Farm in Africa

September 1, 2018

Susi and Manu go to Africa – Part 2

Also this year we – Susi and Manu – decided to travel to Kenya in order to personally check on the situation there. Not only did we want to see the development of the projects with our own eyes, we were very curious about the longterm effects of our projects on the development of the villages.

We did not really know what to expect and thus were very excited. The atmosphere in Olpirikata was very cheerful. As we arrived on a Sunday, the local population had decided to reduce the usually very long mass ceremonies, however, we could not avoid having to sit through a number of relatively long sermons given by lay priests. It was a very warm welcome.

After the opening ceremony, we headed straight off for our visit to the farm or Acacia Camp as the locals call it. The local Masai population has provided 18 ha of land for the farm project, which now includes a stable for 20 dairy cows, three greenhouses, a couple of vegetable fields, fenced grazing land for the cows, a hens’ coop with 250 chicken and 500 Aloe Vera plants. The greenhouses were necessary to protect the young and fragile vegetable plants from the strong and frequent winds in the savannah.

Upon arriving at the farm on time for the vespertine milking at 5pm, we were surprised to find a queue of people lined up with their own plastic containers to buy fresh milk. The plastic containers faintly reminded us of laundry detergent containers. The people had formed a proper line and were waiting patiently until it was their turn.

: Ms. Starbuck’s Olpirikata

Masai milk cans

John Sawa Tuwei is responsible for the farm and is also in charge of the other 6 men and 3 women who are employeed at the farm. The men take care of the cows, ie. they feed, nurture and milk them, and also manage the sale of the milk. They also take care of the fields and the greenhouse and are greatly supported by Antonio, a collaborator of La Nostra Africa who lives in Olpirikata permanently. The three women take care of the hens’ coop and sell the eggs.

: John and his team

Generally speaking, the atmosphere in Olpirikata is very good – thanks to our well project, the village has been spared from last year’s drought and they have enough water for the population as well as for the cattle. The fact that fresh milk can now be easily bought at any time is perceived as a miracle. You can see children waving happily with their milk containers and the local shop owner was able to increase business by selling Chai (sugared tea with hot milk), which has turned her shop into the local Starbuck’s of Olpirikata.

On this trip, we stayed overnight in Olpirikata for the first time, that is to say, we slept in one of the rooms of the Massai Mama Africa Center. We were fed well and enjoyed tomatoes, eggs and milk from the farm. Since Giorgio also wants to teach the Massai how to make cheese, he brought a lab-ferment from Italy for the first trial with local milk. After adding the lab-ferment to the milk, he let it rest for 24 hours and then made the cheese. We got to be the guinea pigs for this first cheese production and we survived!

: In the kitchen of the MMAC

: Handover of patterns

: Pizza in the savannah

The following day we travelled to Iloshion to participate in the celebrations of the first stone laying for the Nasaru Learning Center for Massai Girls. Iloshion suffered a terrible drought last year and people there are worse off than those in Olpirikata. Nevertheless, they provided us with a very friendly and warm welcome with children forming a guard of honor for us. It was very emotional!

We then had the opportunity to observe the children at break time at the local elementary school:
All children bring a little bit of milk in a plastic container to school. This milk is then poured into a huge pot where the women prepare the porridge as a snack for the break. At break time, the kids make a line in front of the pot and everybody gets a portion.

: Empty milk cans

Then we visited the new administration building of Iloshion and interviewed and photographed numerous children and adults.

: Teacher team of Iloshion

: Teachers’ room

After a typical Massai ceremony with lots of speeches and gifts, the whole assembly was directed towards the future construction site for the Nasaru Learning Center.

It was a very big group walking through the savannah as a rather big number of parents had arrived especially for the celebration. The teachers told the children to form a line along the floor space of the future building. This was very impressive as this way one could imagine the dimensions of the future building complex. Symbolically we laid the first stone and then distributed some sweets to the children. A touching moment we had been looking forward to for a very long time!

Our next stop was the Boma complex of a family in Olpirikata. We were invited to discuss a potential future project. The family would be willing to provide land for this project which is still in the planning stage. Although we, as two women, were treated with a little bit of suspicion, we were once again given a very warm welcome.

Our dinner consisted of pizza prepared by Antonio with homemade cheese and tomatoes from the farm! As we were a little scared of potential bacteria, we washed it down with a little bit of gin – strictly as a safety measurement! The nocturnal way to the bathrooms proved to be an adventure which definitely will have a positive impact on Susi’s and Manu’s friendship. Experiences like this are bonding and will never be forgotten. Generally speaking on trips like this one, bodily functions turn into very repetitive and interesting topics!
Next on our list was a visit to Singiraine. This is a village with a population of about 2,000 and does not have any water even though there is a river bed right next to it. Singiraine unfortunately is proof of the German saying, “the opposite of “well done” is very often “well meant”. Actually, another NGO intended to build a dam but unfortunately the project was abandoned before termination and thus the population is still without water. The people, ie the women of Singiraine, have to walk 10 km and more to fetch water! Giorgio from La Nostra Africa is working on the evaluation of a project – in close cooperation with an Italian university – to finish the dam.

: Women fetching water

After a long and very tiring journey back to Nairobi, we went to see furniture to find inspiration for our next project. Information about this project will follow soon…. And then our short but very intensive visit had come to an end. We left Kenya full of new impressions and ideas and know one thing for sure: We will be back!

Africa Empowerment Farm in Africa Food Health Microcredit

March 18, 2018

Facts and Figures about Eggs

Since August 2017 the Masai Farm in Olpirikata, Kenia is up and running and already after five months it has turned autonomous and the ten men working on the farm can be paid with proceeds of the milk sale.
Chicken are also raised on the farm and this connects to one of our future projects, which we will present soon. On the occasion of the upcoming easter celebrations, we have collected a couple of facts about eggs.
Happy reading!

How many eggs does a chicken lay ?

A hen lays approximately up to 280 eggs a year. The amount may vary due to the breed and age of a chicken as well as their feed and environment. They do not lay eggs during the molting season which is when they shed their old old feathers and grow new feathers.

What determines the color of egg shells?

The color of a hen’s egg shells is determined genetically and is not influenced by the feathers or the feed – actually it is determined by their ears. Or more precisely , the color of a hen’s egg shells is determined by the color of the patches where their earlobe would be. Hens with white patches lay white eggs and hens with red patches produce brown eggs. Moreover, there are some breeds known for blue or green eggs. These breeds also have red patches.

Source: Gmoose1, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=6010309

How does the color get into the egg shell?

The different colors of egg shells come from the storage of color pigments in the egg shell which is made of calcium carbonate, a crystal white in color. Consequently, white eggs do not have any pigment in their shell.1) The blue-green color of eggs shells, named oocyan, is considered to consist, in part, of the bile pigment biliverdin. 2)
The color of the eggs is established in the egg gland of the hen where color pigments produced priorily as a side product of blood and bile (where they are stored) are being brought to the calcium shell. If all color pigments come together the color of the egg shell will be brown. If a hen lacks the gene for color production her eggs will be white.
The color of an egg shell, however, does not influence the taste or the nutritional value of an egg. Feeding, environment and genetics are responsable for these characteristics.

Why is the egg not round?

A raw egg is not as fragile as it appears. Even though the egg shell measures only 0.4 mm in thickness, it is almost impossible to break an egg kept upright between the fingers of a hand and even when it is lying flat it is almost impossible to break it with the fingers. The explanation for this resistence can be found in its curved shape, which evenly distributes the pressure applied on one spot over the curve. And of course, the egg has to resist the weight of the hatching hen.
The stability of the curved form also applies to a spherical form. The reason why nature opted for a different packing design is the different rolling pattern once an egg falls out of nest – a spherical shaped egg would roll away much easier than a normal shaped egg. 3) This can be tried out easily: Put a ball and an egg on a table and push them. The ball will roll much longer and maybe even fall off the table whereas the egg will make a curve and roll in a much more irregular way.

What is the nutritional value of an egg?

Eggs are among the most precious animal foods. The biological valence of eggs is higher than that of fish, meat and milk. The egg protein helps the human body to develop important proteins for different body functions and furthermore provides energy and is essential for the composition of muscles.
The yolk is rich in vitamins (A, D, K, B12), protein, calcium, iron as well as fat and cholesterol. The yolk represents on average 42% of an egg’s weight.
An egg white is made mainly of a protein called albumen, and also contains niacin (vitamin B3), riboflavin (vitamin B2), chlorine, magnesium, potassium, sodium and sulfur, according to the Iowa Egg Council, an industry group. The white contains about 58 percent of an egg’s protein.
The so called chalazae are two spiral bands of tissue that suspend the yolk in the center of white and thus prevent the yolk’s attaching to the shell. Fresh eggs show a higher viscosity of the egg white compared to older eggs. The egg white represents on average 58% of the weight of an egg. 5)

The Egg Anatomy of the University of Kentucky Source: http://www.the-chicken-chick.com/2012/09/hatch-along-with-chicken-chick-part-3/egg-anatomy-from-univ-of-kentucky/

How long do eggs last?

Fresh eggs have a minimum shelf life of 28 days after laying. But even after the expiry date they sometimes stay fresh past that date and they do not have to be tossed yet. Old eggs should be heated to at least 70 degrees centigrade to make them safe for consumption.

How to test the freshness of eggs:

The water and bowl test
Place the eggs in a bowl of water. If the egg lays on its side at the bottom, it is still quite fresh. If the egg stands upright on the bottom, it is still fine to eat, but should be eaten very soon, or hard-boiled. If the egg floats to the top, it is past its prime, and not good for eating.

The cracked egg and plate test
The yolk of a fresh egg will have a round and compact appearance and it will sit positioned quite high up in the middle of the egg. The white that surrounds it will be thick and stay close to the yolk. A cloudy coloring to the egg white is a sign of extra freshness, as this « cloudiness » is in fact carbon dioxide, which is present when the egg is laid. Over time, the egg white will become more transparent, as the carbon dioxide dissipates. A less fresh egg will contain a flatter yolk that may break easily and a thinner white that spreads quite far over the plate.

The sound test
Gently shake the egg from side to side. If you cannot hear any sound whatsoever, the egg is perfectly fine to eat and there is nothing wrong with it.

How to store eggs?

Fresh eggs do not have to be stored in the fridge – unless the eggs have been bought stored in the fridge at the supermarket. Consequently, the cold chain should not be broken and the eggs should be stored in the fridge as cold eggs do cope very badly with a change in temperature. An increase in temperature provokes the water condensation on the shell which will damage the cuticle. Thus, germs may get into the inside of the egg. Storing the eggs in the fridge protects the vitamins in the egg from light and oxygen.
So whether or not your store the eggs in the fridge depends on how they were when you bought them but it is very important to protect them from light exposure – in or out of the fridge. Also do they have to be stored with their rounder side up, as storing them upside down would cause the air space to move and cracking the shell membrane which would increase the possibility of bacteria entering.

Why can you store eggs outside the fridge ?

The shell is equipped with approximately 10.000 pores providing the calcium crystals of the shell with a grid like structure which function as a respirational system. The shell is covered with a thin strata, the so called cuticle, that prevents germs from accessing the inside of the egg. Water destroys this natural protection sheet of the egg. Therefore: never wash an egg before storage. 4)

Tips and tricks for handling eggs

Store them best in a carton, protected from light and oxygen.
Never expose fresh eggs to the sun.
Extreme changes in temperature negatively impact the natural protection of the egg, deteriorates the quality and accelerates the aging process of an egg.
You can use eggs after their shelf line date provided that they do not smell badly. At that age though it is safer to not eat them heated at least to 70 degrees centigrade either in a cake or boiled or hard boiled.
Cooking them at a temperature above 90 degrees centigrade can provoke a chemical reaction between the iron of the yolk and the sulfur of the egg white which may lead to the creation of a green ring around the yolk. Putting the egg into cold water after cooking may prevent this.
Eggs are best to eat from day four after laying as it still has to fully develop after being laid.
Always store eggs with the rounder side up to prevent the movement of the air space within the egg. 6)
Never wash eggs before storing them – washing destroys their natural protective layer.
Do not store eggs close to smelly food.
Hard boiled eggs from somewhat older eggs can be peeled easier as the older egg has already changed its acidity due to loss of carbon dioxide through the shell. 7)
Do not chill hard boiled eggs after cooking as this reduces their expiry date. Hard boiled eggs can be stored four weeks and in the fridge up to six weeks.
Remnants of yolk and egg white can be frozen or kept in a small glass. Add some sunflower oil or cold water to prevent it from drying out and put it into the fridge.
Egg shells can be used as fertilizer or be composted.

Sources

http://www.wirkochen.at/lexikon/Der-Unterschied-zwischen-braunen-und-weissen-Eiern/240782411
Wikipedia : https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/oocyan
http://www.daserste.de/information/wissen-kultur/w-wie-wissen/sendung/2010/die-perfekte-form-ei-100.html
https://www.focus.de/gesundheit/praxistipps/eier-richtig-lagern-darauf-kommt-es-an_id_6931486.html.
https://www.lebensmittellexikon.de/e0000520.php
www.eier.de
Zitiert nach Thomas Vilgis, Forscher am Max-Planck-Institut für Polymerforschung in Mainz und Experte unter anderem für die Physik von Nahrungsmitteln im Artikel «Warum sich manches Ei schwer pellen lässt» vom 08.04.2012

Africa Farm in Africa

October 24, 2017

Building a farm in Africa

On July 17 2017 the construction of the long awaited farm finally began. In the first week there were 10 workers present who started clearing the land. The Masai people have dedicated a total of 18 hectare of land to the project which they call «Acacia Camp».

: 18 hectare Masai land dedicated to the farm

: Clearing work

: Clearing work

: The Masai gang

The arrival of the tractor in the following week accelerated the work progress.

: Arrival of the tractor

: Still a lot of work,

: but now a little easier!

Schoolkids are curiously observing the consctruction progress.

: Schoolkids at their observation post

The fencing of the farm started on July 25, 2017. 43 Masai men were ready to take up work at the farm. Unfortunately, they had to be informed that there only 10 men could be granted a job at the farm. We hope that the project will grow soon!

Until August 20, 2017 500 aloe vera plants were planted alongside the 1 km border of the Acacia Camp. The sap of the aloe vera should be used to produce a soothing cream.

The stables slowly are taking form as well.

On August 28,2017 Giorgio Girella went cattle shopping at the Gogar Farm. This farm is owned by an Englishman who has been living in Kenya since 1949 and today owns 16.2 km2 of land with 1.100 cows. Giorgio bought a total of 20 cows of which two were in calf. The first calf of the Acacia Camp will be born in November and the second calf is due in March 2018.

10 days later the cows, including pedigree, were delivered to Olpirikata.

Finally at home!

The cows in their new home.

On September 8, 2017 a total of 40 liters were milked and sold at the Kajiado market for 0.70 Cents per liter. Consequently, seven men earned 3 Euro a day. On the same evening 28 liters of milk were sold directly to the population of Olpirikata who were queuing in front of the farm to buy milk.

The following week marked the beginning of the planting. The milk production has started very well. Every cow gives approximately 10 liters a day – usually the fine tuning of nutrition and milk production takes at least a month. Currently, the milk does not even be brought to the Kajiado market to be sold as people from other communities such as Karero, Ilailupa and Rruya are coming to Olpirikata to buy milk.

On September 28th 2017 was payday and the men were very proud of their work and the milk produced.

Lorenzo is a student at the University of Milan and writes his thesis on the project. The positive progress of the project is also owed to him and his commitment.

There is even a set of rules which has been established for the management of the stables which appear to be extremely clean and organized. The cleanliness is partly due to the men non having been paid for a week after disrespecting the rule of cleanliness.

The first vegetables have been planted and the first harvest will take place in a month time. Stay tuned.

Susi and Manu go to Africa – Part 2