Bambara groundnuts, commonly known as Tsimbande in Marachi community, are fast gaining popularity among farmers in Busia.
The greatest attraction is in the price as the nuts’ market price has been increasing steadily due to people’s awareness of its nutritional value and ready market.
Retailing at between Sh1,000 and Sh1,400 per 2kg tin (locally referred to as gorogoro and most preferred measure in the area), Bambara nuts grow in semi-arid tropics and growing them is not complicated.
They do not require large amounts of inputs and fit well into rain-fed crop rotations and intercrop systems.
In most parts of Butula subcounty where the nuts are commonly grown, the crop covers up to 60 per cent of the area under crop production for the short rain season.
Bambara groundnuts are rich in nutritional properties such as crude fibre, iron, protein, carbohydrate, fat and minerals.
According to research by Kalro Alupe, the nuts also possess antioxidant properties as it contains phytochemicals, such as tannins, flavonoids and phytic acids, which offer health benefits for humans, including preventing chronic diseases, like diabetes, stroke, atherosclerosis, heart disease, cancer, Alzheimer and cardiovascular diseases.
A visit to Esther Anyango's farm, a farmer from Esibembe village in Butula subcounty, revealed that bambara grows well on well-drained, light and sandy loamy soil. They can be intercropped with maize and cassava, among others.
Anyango, who has been cultivating the crop for more than 30 years, said Bambara requires early preparation, which entails tilting the land three times before planting and ensuring weeds are regularly uprooted for high yield.
“Tsimbande is the highest paying cash crop in Busia at the moment. Within a period of five to six months the crop is ready for harvest and the good thing is that we have ready market,” Anyango said.
The precious legume can be served as peanut, cooked as githeri when mixed with maize or it can be boiled and served with tea.
“Bambara nut is a profitable grain legume that requires very little agronomical care while on the farm. It’s a wholesome food and many families around the world have attached value addition to it by making snacks and beverages from its various varieties,” she said.
The plant is associated with the Marachi subtribe, which have mastered the art of cultivating, processing and storing it.
In the Marachi community, Bambara nuts were in the past grown mainly because they were believed to ensure children never suffered malnutrition since they contain minerals that enhance proper growth of children and brain development.
“Children who consume Bambara are healthy, strong and have high retention power in class thus the plant was greatly appreciated in the community,” Anyango said.
Bambara legumes are in three variants: the red seed with huge kernels that mature late and has a high production rate, the coloured seed matures quicker than other cultivars and often has one seed in a tiny to medium-sized kernel and the cream/brown eye produces sizeable kernel.
The planting season is mainly between August and July.
With Busia government's agricultural policy, which has prioritised legumes and edible oil crops as the county's top target cash crops, much needs to be incorporated, including training, provision of certified seeds and market survey, to help farmers get value for this particular produce.
Governor Paul Otuoma, while speaking at Amukura over the weekend, said that the county is set to employ 10 extension officers per ward to mitigate challenges farmers face at the village level.
