Onion Farming Profit Per Acre

Many things have been said about how onion farming can make you rich in Kenya. How much of these claim are true?

The onion also known as the bulb onion or common onion, is a vegetable that is the most widely cultivated species of the genus Allium. It is a close relative of the garlic and widely used in Kenyan kitchen and around the world as a food ingredient.

Onions are generally long-day plants, which means, they need days with more than 12 hours of daylight. Therefore, only varieties with lower day-length needs can be grown in Kenya.

Popular varieties are Jambar F1 (for size and high yield) or Red Passion F1, Bombay Red and Red Pinoy (they have a lower yield but are in high demand at the market and fetch a high price than Jambar F1)

According to Don’t Lose the Plot (DLTP) a television program produced by The Mediae Company whose other productions include Shamba Shape Up , onion farming can give you an income of of Ksh 354,000 per acre (This after deducting your expenses). The total cash spent is estimated at Ksh 125,000 (From nursery all the way to harvesting minus irrigation equipment). The expense cost includes equipment, chemicals, seeds and labour.

Some of the important factors to put in mind before getting into onion farming are;

• Soil health.
• Type of fertilizer to use.
• Crop variety to grow in your region and soil adaptability.
• Manure.
• Transportation to the market.
• Crop yields.
• Irrigation (Water needs).
• Market price.
• Planting timing.

Target market: Local market, Learning Institutions (Boarding Schools), Hospitals, Government Institutions, Ngo’s, Export market and Urban Areas.

To get a free quick guide on how to grow onion check it out here 

Are you an onion farmer? How accurate are these figures? What were your experiences? Please comment below 🙂