this 18yr old student raking in ksh 40,000 from vegetable farming

December 2013 was a hot season, and
young man pocketed Sh 150,000
He is enjoying his law lessons but is
seems Brian Kinyanjui is having his
attention elsewhere.
He got into farming after inspiration
from his grandmother, and now the 18
year old student is already enjoying
the fruits of vegetable farming.

At his grandmother's one acre farm at
Ngecha in Kiambu County, which he
was just given free to use, Kinyanjui is
slowly making serious money.
Records show he rakes in about Sh
40,000 a month from his variety of
exotic vegetables; He has coriander,
spinach, cucumber, lettuce, onions and
several others.

"I like them because the demand is
good and the margins higher than the
local vegetables," he says.
He raised his start up capital of ksh
600 from his pocket money savings
which he used to purchase seedlings.
He adds that he preferred them to
livestock farming because livestock
production is predictable. If it is a
cow, you know how much it will
produce, and the time it will produce.
With vegetables, you never know how
much will come out," says Kinyanjui.

In December, the gods of vegetables
were on his side. He reaped Sh
150,000 from the sales linked to the
festivities and he avers, "It shows
there is big potential here."
A digital farmer, Kinyanjui gathers
information from agri-business
magazines and interacts with youthful
farmers at Mkulima Young website.
This platform will revolutionize how
graduates and students view farming.

There is money to be made, only a
change of mindset is needed," he
advises.
At the moment, he is recouping profits
back to the a farm as well as spending
a bit of it on his personal stuff. His
vision? "I want to be a digital farming
consultant; a reference for young
people doing agriculture," he
reiterates.