Kenyan aloe vera industry to receive government support

The Kenyan government’s recent launch of a scheme to conserve and manage aloe vera as a commercial enterprise marks official commitment to the quest to gain a foothold on the $65 million global medicine and cosmetics industry.

Earlier attempts at bridging the policy gap in order to kick-start commercial planting of the dry land crop, most memorably the 1986 decree banning harvesting of the plant from the wild issued by former president Daniel Moi, fell by the wayside in the absence of official follow up mechanisms.

“Given the importance of this species and the fact that it is widely spread in most parts of Africa, there is urgent need for countries to cooperate in conserving, managing and sustainably utilising the crop, and in enhancing its value chain,” Forestry and Wildlife minister Noah Wekesa said during the strategy launch at the Kenya Wildlife Service (KWS) headquarters in Nairobi.

It is estimated that the global trade in aloe vera raw material and derived products is worth about $110 million. The Agriculture ministry has already prioritised aloe vera as one of the emerging crops in the country.

The crop, which grows wild and is also commercially cultivated for its gel, has gained popularity with the USA being the major producer, followed by Venezuela and Mexico. In Kenya, large plantations of aloe vera are quickly emerging in highland areas of the country.

However, Africa is well endowed with a wide range of indigenous aloe vera species, among them scabrifolia, secundiflora, cadilophila, rivae, and turkanensis, which produce sap that is processed into gum and traded as bitter gum for use in the pharmaceutical and cosmetics industry.

On the international market, South Africa is the largest source of the bitter gum, followed by Kenya. Due to lack of an official policy framework, say experts, the trade in the crop has been vaguely regulated under the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES), an instrument that has failed to stop smuggling of the commodity at low prices.

While international prices have been ranging between $5 and $8 per kilogramme of gum, Kenya’s aloe vera is smuggled out of the country (often by middlemen) at $2 a kilo for farmers.

The newly published Aloe Utilisation Guidelines and Strategy seeks to remove middlemen from the crop’s distribution chain altogether and provide opportunities for better market access to both producers and processors.

“I am informed that some countries are interested in buying our aloe gum, but I urge them to link up with local communities through established government structures in order to access the product at sustainable quantities and fair prices,” said Dr Wekesa. The new strategy also seeks to brand Kenyan aloe vera gum to compete in both the regional and international markets, as well as develop a business plan for sustainable exploitation of the crop.

It will also push for the domestication of regional and international agreements, treaties and conventions in respect to the crop’s utilisation, improvement of stakeholders’ capacity through education and awareness campaigns, and facilitate transfer of appropriate technologies to traders and farmers.

To implement this strategy, KWS projects that an initial budget of Sh180 million will be required in the first five years to help operationalise the Aloe Species Regulations Act, 2007. The money will also be used for product development, training and research as well as monitoring and evaluation of aloe vera projects.

At the moment, the only aloe vera processing facility that the country has is the four million shillings Baringo Bio Enterprise Factory, constructed in 2004 by money advanced to Kenya by the European Union.

However, as matters stand now, the government has its duty well cut out if it has to persuade more people to begin planting aloe vera on a commercial scale. Among immediate tasks is to ensure that farmers get good returns on their investments.

For instance, the Baringo factory is yet to make any significant impact on the way farmers look at the crop as it only pays Sh35 (US 50 cents) per kilo of aloe gum, only Sh15 more that what middlemen used to offer before the plant was constructed. Farmers have been calling for the factory’s privatisation to make management responsive to market dynamics and their needs.

Kavaka Watai Mukonyi, a KWS researcher, said that Uganda and Kenya have high potential for producing aloe sap which, if fully exploited, could see the two countries dominate world markets.

But unlike Kenya, which has taken too long to draft a national policy on commercial exploitation of the crop, Uganda had long recognised the role that the dry land crop can play in transforming lives in marginal areas such as Karamoja. The county’s aloe farming project is now run from President Yoweri Museveni’s office.

“Besides its role in diversifying marginal areas’ economy beyond livestock, this crop could be the lasting solution for the incessant conflict among pastoralists living along the Kenya/Uganda border,” added Mr Kavaka.

The fact that Kenya is looking westwards to the landlocked country for a role model for its infant aloe vera commercial farming became apparent in July when it turned out that among the distinguished guests invited to attend the launch of the scheme was Mr Aston Kajara, Uganda’s Minister of State under whose docket aloe commercial farming lies. Uganda has since set up a Sh30 million aloe vera processing plant.

In an interview with Business Daily Aloe Growers Association chairman Sospeter Njenga, who is also the technical director of Herbal Garden — an aloe products manufacturer — said the new strategy was a good reflection of what farmers have been yearning for. “The fact that the government now recognises aloe as an emerging crop means the Agriculture ministry will now provide us with quality seeds and knowledgeable field extension officers who we lack at the moment,” he said.

The association is optimistic that the government will now fight unauthorised imports of aloe products that have, over the years, tilted competition against local manufacturers. The association, Mr Njenga added, expected the government to cut duty on importation of aloe vera juice extraction equipment.

It costs manufacturers around Sh20 million to bring such equipment into the country. Besides KWS, other government agencies such as the National Museums of Kenya, Kenya Bureau of Standards (KEBS), Kenya Forestry Service and Kenya Revenue Authority have well defined roles to play in promoting the commercial exploitation of aloe vera.

“We hope that by including Kebs in the strategy, the government will significantly cut down on red tape that has been the hallmark of trade in aloe products,” Mr Njenga said, adding that a local aloe products manufacturer had to wait for long, after paying the Sh20,000 fee to Kebs, before getting the mark that allowed him to sell in the local market.

A recent aloe vera resource mapping exercise indicated that commercial farming has already taken root in 19 districts in the Rift Valley, Eastern, North Eastern and Coast provinces. Farmers in Western and Nyanza provinces, where the plant grows naturally, are yet to try their hand at commercial exploitation of the crop.

Business Daily Africa

Kenya aloe policy expected to revitalise sector

The value of aloe gum is expected to double in Kenya beginning next month with the planned roll out of a new policy allowing its export.

Export of the medicinal products was banned in the 1980s, confining growers to the low-paying domestic market.

Kavaka Watai, the coordinator of the aloe project at the Kenya Forest Research Institute, said the ban has seen most dealers revert to smuggling of the product, forcing the price to fall to as low as $2 per kilogramme.

Dealers said the anticipated publication of the new guidelines for export has already pushed up the value of aloe to about $5.

Industry guidelines on aloe production have continued to emphasise plantation extraction rather than extraction from the wild. This is meant to prevent exploitation of naturally growing aloe.

In central Kenya, the race is on among farmers who are positioning themselves for the expected windfall.

A district monitoring committee comprising of KWS, KEFRI, livestock and environment officers will grant the necessary authorisation. The committee will have to certify that a farmer has the skills to harvest the crop according to the guidelines. Besides, those who want to export the crop will obtain another licence from the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES).

Kenya is a signatory to the convention, which classifies aloe as one of the world’s endangered species that needs protection from overexploitation.

Gerald Thuo from the Kieni Aloe Growers Association said local farmers were ready to grow and exploit aloe for commercial purposes under the new guidelines. “We look forward to exporting this crop since we are the only group that has been planting indigenous aloe.”

Permission to export is also expected to offer a lifeline to the Baringo Aloe Project that was launched in mid 1980s to build a large scale extraction factory.

Business Day Africa

Kenyan aloe factory lies dormant

The only aloe processing factory in Kenya lies dormant due to a dispute over its control.

Baringo Aloe Bio-enterprise project was commissioned by the European Union early last year.

The EU invested Sh10.5 million ($162,000) in the project, which at one time was touted to be a solution to the poverty in the semi-arid region.

However, suspicion among interested parties has stalled the project.

The excitement that accompanied the construction of the factory has turned to anxiety and disappointment for residents who domesticated the wild plant expecting huge returns. Local leaders and a private investor, brought on board by the Government to help solicit market for its products, are haggling over the control of the firm.

The firm’s establishment was meant to legalise the export of aloe extract to pharmaceutical companies.

A big area of Baringo District is under the arid and semi arid lands (ASALS) and the residents depend on livestock. But it is the aloe that might turn out to be their gold mine.

The Kenya Wildlife Service (KWS) and the Kenya Forest Research Institute (Kefri) are key partners in the project. The two organisations were expected to provide the regulatory responsibility and carry out research.

“We want farmers to plant more because we cannot sustain the factory if farmers harvest plants in the bush. In fact, this is an endangered plant that we need to protect,” said an officer at the site.

Chairman David Chemwotei says: “The project belongs to the community and nobody else, so the investor should abide by our demands, or we will get another partner and stop him from playing any other role.” He said the group refused to a sign a memorandum of understanding with the investor because “he prepared it alone to suit his interests.’’

The residents claim they are the rightful owners of the project, but government officials maintain that a third party has to be included to help play the role of marketing the business and the products.

District commissioner Hassan Farah said that the biggest challenge was on the side of the farmers to satisfy the required capacity to ensure that the factory remains operational once it opens.

The plant is among the endangered species and is under government protection. The farmers are therefore not allowed to harvest those growing in the bush but are encouraged to plant their own.

The plant takes up to three years to mature and Kefri officials maintain that this has been the biggest contributor to the delay. The organisation has been providing training to the farmers on the various methods of planting and harvesting aloe. To stop them from uprooting the whole plant, they are taught how to harvest mature leaves and save the plant for future harvests.

The Daily Nation

Kenyan aloe vera gel battles for local acceptance

Kenyan farmers say they are finding it difficult to market their aloe vera gel against imported gel from South Africa and Brazil that have dominated the skin and beauty care products market for the past two decades. Manufacturers have maintained their preference for imported gel, citing quality and pricing concerns.

Mr. Gerald Thuo of Kieni Aloe Vera Growers Association, a farmers organisation with more than 300 members, said farmers face collapse at the hands of cheap imports and urged manufacturers to give them a chance. He said manufacturers have refused to take up the local produce despite the growers having partnered with the University of Nairobi to improve the purification of their products as well as getting Kenya Bureau of Standards quality certification.

Inability to sell the gel has seen the group's stock of aloe gel pile up in its stores, leading to fears of possible total loss.

Mr. Joseph Macharia, the production manager at Interconsumer Products Limited, manufacturers of body lotion, said the slow pace of chemical verification and certification is to blame for the reluctance of local manufacturers to buy locally-produced aloe gel. "Kenya Bureau of Standards takes too long to verify the product," he said.

Besides, Macharia said, most manufacturers have specific parameters for the raw materials that many farmers have been unable to meet. "Our inclination is actually to build a local aloe very industry to reduce our dependence on imports," he said.

Business Daily

Uganda set to increase Aloe Vera processing, exports

Members of the Uganda Commercial Aloe Vera Farmers Association are to start exporting processed Aloe Vera products to Japan and Korea. The Director of Uganda Commercial Aloe Vera Farmers Association, Hajji Ali Sessanga said that the association had secured $600,000 from a foreign lender to purchase a machine that would process Aloe Vera into various products for export and local consumption.

The aloe plant's products have a number of health benefits and have been used for medicinal purposes around the world for more than 3,500 years. A vast amount of research has been done on aloe, showing the plant's products to be effective and significant in the treatment of various ailments and skin disorders, as well as in the making of cosmetics.

Sessanga said the $300,000 machine worth would process Aloe Vera into toothpaste, medicinal liquids, cosmetics and animal feeds. He said the machine had the capacity to crush harvests from 60 hectares (144 acres) per month. Uganda's Aloe Vera acreage coverage is 380 hectares (912 acres). He added that association members would also export Aloe Vera flowers to Sudan where there is a market for them for the production of Aloe Vera herbal tea.

Sessanga said that part of the loan would among other things be used to boost production so as to sustain supply in both local and international markets. "The association entered into a partnership with Southern Fields International of Texas,U.S., to strengthen the Aloe Vera business in Uganda. We have already started buying the crop from farmers from various districts and once the machine arrives here in May (2007), processing of the product will start immediately," he said.

About 130,000 farmers in 26 districts of Uganda are currently involved in the growing of the crop. According to Sessanga, a hectare (2.4 acres) of land accommodates 4,000 Aloe Vera plants. Each plant produces five kilogrammes of Aloe Vera and each kilogramme fetches 300 Ugandan shillings (US 20 cents).

Ssesanga said that farmers were previously being discouraged from producing on a large scale because there was a small market for the plant. "But as we start processing, farmers are advised to return to massive production because the market is now available."

The Monitor

East Africa's fledgling aloe trade

Aloe (Aloe vera) farmers in Kenya are voicing fears of losing export markets for the health-related plant to Uganda due to delays in gazetting a policy framework on aloe production in the country. The plant has remained an endangered crop protected by the Kenya Wildlife Service (KWS) under the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES). No aloe exporter has been licensed by the government and exports of the plant are all technically illegal.

Meanwhile, the Ugandan government has devoted resources to aloe production and has a policy for the crop. Kavata Watai, who heads the aloe exploitation department at the Kenya Forest Research Institute (KEFRI), says that aloe production in Uganda is at a more advanced stage. "The Ugandan government is more aggressive and has put a lot of resources in aloe exploitation," he said.

Kavata said that an aloe extraction factory bigger than the one currently in Baringo will soon be constructed in Uganda. "We fear that the export orders we have gotten may be taken to Uganda where the aloe industry is already established and ready to supply," said Gerald Thuo, chairman of the Kieni Aloe Plantations. "Our farmers have been waiting for a long time and are eager to export aloe gum."

Various stakeholders, including KWS, Kefri, producers and dealers have already met and come up with a policy draft. Dr. James Njogu of KWS said that it is waiting to be gazetted into law, expected in April.

Thuo said his organisation, which has more than 350 aloe farmers, has received orders to provide 12 tonnes of the crop per year to Britain, China and Japan. But the farmer says he cannot apply for a licence, as the policy has not been passed into law.

The Kieni group finished building a Sh3 million ($45,000) extraction plant at Nairutia in 2006. In Baringo, the aloe project already lost orders of more than 200 tonnes, but Kavata attributes that to internal wrangles rather than Ugandan competition.

The lack of a legal framework has led to the emergence of a large black market and smuggling of the plant out of the country. A report by the Kenya Revenue Authority shows that aloe worth Sh320 million ($5 million) was smuggled out of the country between 1986 and 2000. This stopped when many loopholes for illegal exports were closed by the government, forcing local producers to find legal channels of exporting aloe gel.

Kavata said the government had put in place many control measures for sustainable harvesting of aloe and to prevent destruction of naturally occurring aloes, which grow in communal lands and in restricted areas like parks and game reserves.

Business Day