By Moses Nampala
After successfully carrying out a variety of farming enterprises that include; poultry, piggery and commercial tree growing, in 2020, Paul Nyende incorporated value addition into his setup.
He processes cooking oil from soy beans at a factory he set up in Podut, on the Malaba border-Bugiri highway in Magoola sub-county, Tororo district.
Nyende says he ventured into value addition to curb the wastage of the crop during bumper harvests.
Apart from farming being a passion, Nyende is a qualified agriculturalist holding a bachelors of science in agriculture and a masters’ degree in soil management from Makerere University.
He has also engaged in research studies, interacted with researchers and made benchmarking trips to grow his trade.
“Three years before oil production began, our priority was convincing farmers in a number of districts to embrace growing of soy,” Nyende says.
The districts included; Tororo, Bugiri and Budaka.
Nyende says hundreds of farmers embraced the project and were supplied with seed and equipped with the best agronomic practices for the crop.
“We started production with 500 contract farmers, then producing 15 metric tonnes of soy beans,” he says.
Over the years, the number of contract farmers has risen to 3,000.
“The volume of soy bean realised per season has increased to 120 tonnes from 15,” observes Nyende.
The varieties the farmers are encouraged to grow include; MAKSOY3N, MAKSOY4N and MAKSOY6N, developed by the National Agricultural Research Organisation (NARO).
Acquiring oil extractor
Although years of working in numerous agro-related community non-government organisations has enabled him to make a substantive amount of savings, Nyende could not afford the cost of acquiring a soy bean oil extracting machine without support from a financial institution.
He decided to go to a local bank and borrowed sh430m, which enabled him to ship the machine in 2020.
How the machine works
The machine has three chambers, namely the mill, moistening and oil extractor, according to Robert Odikor, the machine operator.
When clean soy is fed in the mill chamber, it is broken into small crumbs, almost to flour form. The milled soy is then fed in the moisture chamber, which heats it into paste, which is then conveyed into the oil extraction chamber, where oil is produced.
When oil is harvested, it is transferred into tanks to cool and settle for a couple of hours, before it is packaged. Odikor says at the tail end of oil extraction process, are two commodities — cooking oil and soy bean cake.
Best agronomic practices
To get the most from their farms, the farmers are trained in the best agronomic practices for soy. The most appropriate spacing, experts advise is 30cm by 5cm (line[1]hole).
A farmer is required to drop two seeds per hole, which means an acre takes 25kg of seed. Soybean is a resilient crop that can survive in harsh conditions. However, the crop is not resistant to pests and diseases, like early leaf blight, which are managed by spraying with pesticides.
Averagely, soybean takes 90 days to mature, with an acre yielding 800kg-1000kg.
Farm gate price
Because transaction between the factory and farmers community is formal (signing contracts) right from the start, each farmer is aware of what they will earn per kilo.
“Since production started, we have staked a farm gate price of sh1,500 for every kilogramme of soybean. We run a cash-on-delivery system in a bid to help farmers come out of poverty,” Nyende observes.
Production capacity
The machine has a production capacity of processing 60 tonnes of soybean “Every 100kg of soy yields 13 litres of cooking oil and more than 70kg of soybean cake,” Odikor says.
Market
Cooking oil has a wide market locally and internationally. Years of operation in production has hooked them a clientele Amellia Akello, the factory administrator and accountant, says a litre of soy oil goes for sh8,000 at the factory.
Soybean cake is sold mostly to animal feed factories and farmers engaged in poultry and livestock, with a kilogramme going for sh2,000, according to Akello.
Labour force
Akello says the factory employs 12 permanent staff, who include agronomists that offer extension services to farmers. She, however, observes that during peak moments, such as harvest seasons, management sources extra workers.
Achievements The factory does not operate in rented properties. It was built on a parcel of land that Nyende purchased at sh37m.
Over the years, the value of the property has risen to more than sh300m, with the cost of the machinery not included. Operation of the factory has improved livelihoods of 3,000 smallholder farmers in Tororo, Budaka and Bugiri districts that supply soybean.
The factory has created employment for the community, which includes over 200 labourers during peak moments. Plans
“As the business gets better, automation is my biggest dream,’ Nyende says.
Other ventures Nyende has also successfully tried his hands in numerous farming enterprises, notable among others is commercial tree farming of a 50 acre forest.
“Part of the forest is pine trees, which are now more than eight years old. Others are eucalyptus,” he says. Both piggery and poultry enterprises are part of the substantive productive enterprises Nyende operates in Busoga sub-regions.
Who is Nyende?
He was born to Dodovico Nyende and Edna Bawaye, 50 years ago in Mukuta, Baitambogwe, Mayuge district.
His earliest exposure and appreciation of farming enterprises developed when he was a little boy.
“My father barely completed Primary Seven, but he became a prosperous farmer with several commercial properties in urban areas,” Nyende says.
He says the lukewarm formal education was never a barrier for his father from getting information about cash crops from which he could make a kill.
Nyende adds that his father cultivated sugarcane, and this enabled him take his children to school.
Nyende went to Kamuli Boys Primary School and Busoga College Mwiri for both O’ and A’level.
He then went on to Makerere University where he acquired a bachelor’s degree in the discipline of science in agriculture, followed by a masters’ in soil and land management.
Nyende has worked with numerous community agro-related non-governmental organisations, namely World vision, Centre for International Tropical Agriculture Africa 2000 and the Food and Agriculture Organisation, before venturing into private business.
What others say
Immaculate Nyachwo, 60, registered farmer
I have been supplying the factory with soy since it was established.
When the harvest is ready for collection, the money finds me at my door step.
Ann Mary Naula, 54, contract farmer
I am raising six children and the soybean project has relieved me of the stress of searching for tuition for my children in tertiary institutions.
Denis Nampindo, 45, mill machine operator
Nyende is a generous person. He has helped me to not only acquire a piece of land, but also supported me to erect a commercial structure.
LEAD PHOTO CAPTION: One of the workers displaying soy oil made at the factory.
