ELGON NUTS
The premium organic macadamia nut
Onja Uone Limited is a family-owned farming and agro-processing company strategically located at Lukhuna Village. It is in the rural heartland of rich farmlands on the undulating and panoramic slopes of Mt. Elgon in Trans Nzoia and Bungoma counties. In the late 1990s, the company transitioned from farming and selling maize, the main food crop in western Kenya, into growing and later, processing macadamia nuts under the brand name Elgon Nuts. Knowledge about the health benefits of macadamia nuts is increasing among consumers globally, and so is knowledge of the economic value of the crop to farmers in western Kenya, especially in the counties of Bungoma, Trans Nzoia, Uasin Gishu, Baringo, Bomet, and Kericho where new orchards are being planted every year.
Through processing of macadamia in this rural location and exporting to a growing international market, we provide a ready market to local farmers. We have also raised their awareness of the changing quality requirements of global consumers, which has a positive rub-on effect on the quality of other produce.
We support farmers through an agricultural extension service to improve the productivity of their orchards and have recently introduced contract farming with our company to enable them be more certain of selling their produce during each season.
Our processing factory has introduced high level skilled jobs to this rural location which has contributed to raising the average purchasing power in the area. Thus Onja Uone Ltd is helping to lower poverty rates among the people and to contribute to enabling Kenya meet international millennium development goals.
The People We Serve
- All the macadamia we process is grown organically on orchards of 0.3 to 3 hectares in size by hundreds of small-scale farmers in a new growing region in western Kenya stretching from the volcanic slopes of Mt Elgon to the north to the rich soils of Lake Victoria basin to the south and the fertile highlands of the western Rift Valley to the east. The Elgon Nuts orchard is one of the largest at 10 hectares.
- Traditionally, macadamias are grown in central Kenya around the slopes of Mount Kenya where all other processing facilities are located, 300 miles away. The new Elgon Nuts processing facility is the first in the western region where it is stimulating much interest in the growing of macadamia trees.
- Elgon Nuts offers farmers quality grafted seedlings from our own nursery and farm extension support.
Elgon Macadamia Nuts
- By farming culture, the Elgon macadamia nut is a natural organic product. It is produced manually, mostly with available farm manure and a minimum of fertilizers and pesticides. Small-scale farmers do not have the resources to do otherwise. This is clearly evident from the certificates of analysis.
- The Elgon macadamia nut is processed according to the international Food Safety System Certification (FSSC22000 Version 5.1) standard for which processing staff have been trained and a certification audit is planned before the end of 2020. Elgon Nuts will adopt any other food quality certification preferred by the buyer.
- Like all macadamia nuts, Elgon macadamias are a superfood with excellent health benefits including:
- The highest monosaturated fats of any seed, with high levels of omega 7
- Gluten-free, rich in vitamins and amino acids, providing a rich source of energy
- The high levels of palmitoleic acids and oleic acids makes macadamias a desirable ingredient in cosmetic products including skin care products, shampoos, and sunscreen.
