Arable Farming We grow 250 hectares of sugar cane. This is reputed to be some of the best sugar cane in the country with yields of over 100 tonnes per hectare and averaging 8 ratoons. Some of this cane is sold to nearby millers but much of it is now processed on site into jaggery, an unrefined form of sugar that has many positive health benefits and is processed without use of Chemicals. We also grow Maize for Grain. Livestock We have a stud herd of about 70 Boran cows, inspected by the Boran Cattle Breeders Society and registered with the Kenya Stud Book, which produce animals for breeding and meat. The best bull calves are selected for sale to other breeders. Surplus heifers may be sold or may be transferred to the commercial beef herd as breeders. Holstein Friesian cows are kept for milking. These animals are milked twice daily and the product sold locally. This herd comprises 45-50 cows with followers. Semen from both the Central Artificial Insemination Services, Nairobi and imported is used on these cows. The cows and progeny are registered with the Kenya Stud Book and milk yields recorded with the Dairy Recording Service of Kenya. Heifers are raised for sale. The Friesians tend to be sold to farmers who are keeping their cattle on a zero-grazing regime.   We are in the process of using Ayrshire semen to eventually develop an Ayrshire stud herd comprising 45-50 cows. Certain farmers in our area prefer Ayrshires to Friesians, particularly those living in hilly areas, where the cattle graze out. These cows are also milked twice daily and the product sold locally. A Red Poll stud is also being established. These animals are dairy ranched, which means they are milked morning only and suckle their calves in the day. The calf is then separated from the mother at night. The Red Polls produce an excellent cross animal with the Boran for beef production in our area, they are heat tolerant and being relatively small framed and early maturing, we can finish them off in our conditions more easily than the bigger continental breeds. The Red Poll has good meat to bone ratio and is a good milker under adverse conditions. The Commercial Herd of 70 suckler cows are Boran and Boran crosses, which are put to Red Poll, Friesian or Ayrshire bulls for production of beef or heifers that may be sold as cross-bred heifers for milk production. These cross animals under conditions prevailing in much of Kenya are very useful to smallholders, having hybrid vigour, increased disease resistance and heat tolerance. For the less developed areas with lower potential they are ideal and are capable of producing substantial amounts of milk under relatively poor levels of management. Some of the cattle are kept in yards and are zero grazed on sugar cane tops/grass, molasses, and a protein supplement. Manure from these is collected to produce biogas and the remaining slurry is spread on the crops. There is a pig unit for production of both porkers and baconers for meat. Most of these are currently sold to Farmers Choice Limited.   Forestry We have a forestry section comprising 200 hectares of trees, mainly eucalyptus for fuel for the lime factory but also some indigenous trees. In addition part of the farm has been gazetted as a national monument for the preservation of indigenous woodland. We also lease land in the vicinity for growing fuelwood plantations as well as helping other farmers to establish their own plantations on their farms. Sugar Cane field Borans Red Poll x Boran milking cows Forestry Nursery Quarry with Forestry in background