From the time Alex ole Mula was in primary school, he always dreamt of becoming a successful farmer one day. He grew up around farmers and he hoped to emulate them, and become wealthier.
Luckily, he joined the university to study agriculture economics. But by the time he reached third year, he felt he had learnt the basics of agripreneurship and that an extra year in school would delay his ambition of making a fortune out of farming. In 2009, he dropped out of university.
He had inherited about 10 acres of land from his father. The land had been lying idle for 15 years and he started growing vegetables and keeping livestock on it.
Having grown up in a pastoralist family and witnessed the mass death of animals due to drought, he dug boreholes on his farm to ensure constant supply of water.
When BDLife caught up with the 46-year-old at his Kisaju farm, off Namanga Road, two weeks ago, he was supervising a handful of farmhands, tending to basil, a herb that he now exports.
Mr Mula says he knew little about basil farming. Three years ago, an Asian exporter approached him to grow the herb for him.
"He wanted the herbs for export. I engaged an expert to do soil testing and the results were positive. I began with a one-unit greenhouse before extending to 10 greenhouses occupying an acre of the land. I spent about Sh2.5 million," he says.
At first, his initial weekly harvest was 700 kilogramme from an eighth of an acre but the harvest increased gradually. By the second week, the harvest had grown to 900 kilogrammes.
Despite the basil showing signs of success, he continued growing his vegetables and doing dairy farming, supplementing the income from the basil farm.
“Having land gave me a head start. And the basil business was being supported by vegetables, tomatoes, onions and dairy farming for the entire year. That's how I managed to remain profitable," says. Mr Mula who keeps the livestock under zero grazing.
The agripreneur says he invested Sh250,000 in the first basil greenhouse. He hired three casual labourers but his staff has now risen to 15, working in different sections of the 10-acre farm.
Solar panel powering a water borehole at Alex Ole Mula's farm in Kisaju, Kajiado East Subcounty on January 5, 2025.
Photo credit: Stanley Ngotho | Nation Media Group
"Back in primary school, I envisioned myself as a modern farmer breaking away from pastoralism, common with my Maasai community. I wanted to diversify into crop production," the father-of-six says.
"The rain has been very minimal but with the availability of borehole water we can transform this area into a food basket."
He has a solar-powered borehole, which keeps his electricity costs at a bare minimum and has enabled him to do drip irrigation in his greenhouses.
For the basil to thrive and ensure they are of grade 1 quality suited for export, he maintains a temperature of between 21 to 26 degrees Celsius in the greenhouses.
They are also locked to prevent insects and diseases. He has also hung insect trappers to prevent them from entering the greenhouses.
Because the herbs take four weeks (28 days) to mature, he has been able to reap benefits by producing one tonne per week at a retail price of Sh600 per kilogramme translating to Sh600,000 weekly.
He harvests the herbs for two months continuously. Each greenhouse has different dates of maturity for constant supply. He is currently growing Thai basil and Aroma II basil.
Besides the first exporter, he now sells to middlemen who usually collect it from his farm and package it for themselves.
Farming hurdles
Like any other starter farmer, Mr Mula faced challenges. He says sourcing certified seeds was his biggest challenge. Numerous times he fell into the dragnet of unscrupulous traders. He now sources his seeds from the Kenya Plant Health Inspectorate (Kephis).
The lack of a direct export market has been another towering challenge for him. He says the availability of a direct global herbs market for local farmers would increase their profit margins.
“Thai Basil, aroma II does well in Kajiado County due to harsh conditions. I once bought the wrong seeds from an uncertified outlet incurring losses. I could hardly harvest half a tonne every week. The variety of the seed to plant is a major challenge for starters,’’ says Mr Mula, "we also have fake insecticides in the market that is a major setback.’’
Alex Ole Mula showing his refrigerated container at his farm in Kisaju, Kajiado East SubCounty on January 5, 2025.
Photo credit: Stanley Ngotho | Nation Media Group
He is considering expanding his basil farm and getting more exporters as the rising global demand for the herb has prompted the buyers to source them from the farmers directly.
About 80 percent of European basil supplies currently come from Kenya. The produce, used in cooking, as a medicine, and as an aromatic ingredient in spas, arrives via chilled air cargo.
People also buy it for its benefits which include vitamin K, manganese, calcium and magnesium. It is also said to help in bone health and blood clotting.
For those looking to start growing basils, he says it is lucrative but requires thorough research on the best variety suitable for a certain region, certified seeds pesticides and importantly, having a refrigerated storage facility to curb post-harvest losses.
To avoid waste of the highly perishable herb, Mr Mula has invested in a single mega refrigerated container to ensure the herbs remain fresh after harvesting, waiting to be ferried to the airport for export.
He also advises starters to monitor the global market trend to understand prices.
"For instance, I am now confronted by the reality that I need to inject more capital to tap more benefits. But I will do it cautiously considering the plant is highly perishable. Herbs farming is an expensive venture but highly profitable compared to vegetables and pastoralism, especially now that livestock keeping is untenable due to climate change," he says.
