Tomato grafting technology from China boosts production in Kenya

KENYA – A new tomato grafting technology introduced to local small-scale farmers through a partnership between Nanjing Agricultural University and Egerton University, has proven to be a gamechanger by significantly boosting tomato production on pilot farms in Kenya.

The project was part of a program funded by the China-International Fund for Agricultural Development South-South and Triangular Cooperation Facility.

The one-year project, titled Empowering Rural Youth through Innovative Horticultural Solutions in Tomato Value Chain, is being carried out in Nakuru city.

Since its launch earlier this year, the project has trained more than 1,000 small-scale farmers in modern agricultural techniques.

Stephen Githengu, a horticultural lecturer at Egerton, said the project has 15 greenhouses owned by small-scale farmers in Nakuru County who were recruited and trained in the new technology.

Tomato grafting involves attaching the shoot of a high-yielding but disease-sensitive tomato variety (scion) to the rootstock of a hardy, disease-resistant variety, explained Liu Yutao, the Chinese director of the Confucius Institute at Egerton University in Nakuru County, Kenya.

Late last year, the Confucius Institute of Egerton University invited the first batch of agricultural experts from Nanjing Agricultural University to Kenya to provide training on tomato grafting technology.

Liu said that last year, 290,000 hectares of tomatoes were planted in Kenya, yielding a total production of 681,000 metric tons.

The first grafted tomatoes ripened late last month, with initial assessments conducted in pilot areas such as Molo, Naivasha and Bahati subcounties.

Willy Gitonga, one of the local farmers benefiting from this grafting technology, mentioned that the technology helps reduce reliance on costly chemical pesticides and fertilizers, which always eat up farmers’ profits.

“We are all familiar with the fact that tomato fruits are incredibly seasonal, and with traditional farming we could only harvest twice per year. But now, with grafting technology, we can plant and harvest throughout the year due to its ability to resist seasonal diseases,” he said.

There are plans to expand the technology to other regions in Kenya to improve food security. Tomato prices in Kenya have been increasing due to a number of factors, including unpredictable weather patterns.

Liu noted that the program is also eyeing innovations in the tomato value chain to empower more rural youth and women as a way of creating a decent income.

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