A snail farmer behind the successful Kono Farm has been named a winner alongside four other companies across East Africa in the recently concluded sixth annual Give Work Challenge (GWC).
The Leila Jana Foundation (LJF), in a statement on Monday, honoured Kono Farm alongside three other outstanding businesses, including Mvuvi from Kenya, Mawejje Creations (Uganda) and the Reusable Sanitary Pad Project (Uganda).
Each of the winning entrepreneurs will receive one year of mentorship and a grant of Ksh868,000 ($6,000), totallying to Ksh3.5 million.
The money is intended to bolster their business endeavours and create a positive ripple effect within their local communities.
"Through the GWC grant and mentorship, each of our winners will have a larger impact on their communities that will ripple out and positively impact many more individuals,” stated Liliosa Mbirimi, LJF Program Director.
“We are proud to continue the mission of our namesake, Leila Janah, to alleviate global poverty by giving work, not handouts.”
Kono Farm was honoured for its role in promoting sustainable snail agriculture as both an alternative protein source as well as an ingredient for skincare.
Mvuvi, on the other hand, produces high-quality processed fish while reducing waste and environmental pollution in Lake Victoria by converting fish waste into animal feed, fertilizer and energy.
“Mvuvi applied for the LJF’s GWC because it resonates deeply with our mission to empower marginalized individuals through meaningful opportunities,” explained Arnold Adero, founder of Mvuvi.
“Winning the fund fills us with immense gratitude and excitement, as it fuels our commitment to creating a lasting impact and driving positive change in the fisheries and aquaculture community."
The four companies join 37 ventures, which have received northwards of Ksh29 million since 2018, thus creating 322 jobs for previously unemployed youth.
Rise of Snail Farming
Over the last decade, snail farming has been gaining popularity across the country, hence rewarding farmers handsomely. In April 2021, the Jomo Kenyatta Institute of Agriculture and Technology (JKUAT) joined the lucrative business whose kilo of meat is valued at Ksh1,500.
The institution further engaged in slime extraction at Ksh1,200 a litre, with 3,000 snails producing up to 10 litres a week.
Snails are considered nutritious as they comprise 70 per cent low-calorie protein, which is 15 per cent of their total mass, with fat accounting for 2.4 per cent and the other 80 per cent being water. They are in high demand in the international market.
"It is a venture that has a ready, highly profitable market for the snails and their byproducts, and since they adapt to various environmental conditions, it is possible to rear them in small towns, cities, farms, at backyards or commercial levels and villages," Dr Paul Kinoti of Bio snail farming told Kenyans.co.ke in a previous interview.
So good is the business that former Prime Minister Raila Odinga's daughter Rosemary launched her own snail business in a greenhouse on her 25-acre farm in Kiserian.
