“It’s all about the balance between continuity in the business and harmony in the family”

The strength of family business and its importance to an economy is widely praised. The family business is a success. But what about the ‘behind the scenes’ of all these success stories? What is ‘the real story’? Because where people work, there are strong emotions.

It seems that within the family, the emotional factor plays an even greater role than in a non-family business. Emotions can be a source of strength, but also a source of conflict. Why is one family business able to handle these emotions, whereas another family business becomes a victim of their emotions? In short: what is the psychology behind the family business?

Globally, 60% of companies are family businesses and in the flowers sector, the percentage is even higher. “We can, of course, address the issues that arise within families in a very substantive and technical way, but if we were to focus only on that, we would go wrong. Then you disregard the dynamics of a family business with its family bonds and emotions. Therefore, it is always an important skill when working with family businesses to find the balance between the continuity of the company and the harmony in the family.”

Read more: A Closer Look At Family Businesses

As new trends emerge, Kenyan farmers in the future will have to innovate continuously in order to remain competitive; the farmers will need to respond to the permanent pressure on margins, professionalism, increase demand and face growers in abroad countries with excellent farming techniques.

Koppert Biological Systems (K) Limited is one input supplier that is increasing partnerships and always carrying out research and investigations on the new, easy and highly effective farming methods that will enable farms to increase their yield while making their farming an enjoyable experience, priding itself in helping Kenyan farmers remain the leaders in the world markets.

This was revealed when Koppert Biological Systems (K) Ltd in partnership with Kenyatta University brought a team of professionals in different fields of the agriculture sector together in a Nairobi Hotel to discuss how to salvage the tomato production in Kenya. The workshop which marked the inception of Tomato ARF funded project was attended by researchers, academicians and scientists from the private sector, different universities, KARLO, KEPHIS, Ministry of Agriculture, Livestock and Fisheries among others. The workshop was also attended by large scale and small scale farmers drawn from different parts of the country. The workshop was an inception of a three year cross-sectional survey research project.

Read more: Salvaging Tomato Production in Kenya

Airfreight must improve service quality if it is to minimise the impact of customers with perishable goods switching to seafreight. Kuehne & Nagel’s global business development manager for perishables logistics, Natasha Solano, said that over the last few years there had been a trend for perishable cargo to transfer over to ocean transport.

She said this was partly down to the reduced cost of using ocean transport -in some areas flower transport costs are reduced by 40% — environmental concerns and also shipping lines opening new routes serving perishable-producing markets. However, it was also because of improvements in refrigerated sea container technology which mean that temperature fluctuations during transport were greatly reduced.

The temperature of goods when being flown tended to be more volatile than shipping because of the number of times it is handled, she explained. In contrast to seafreight, where goods are loaded into a container at an early stage in the supply chain and then not generally handled again until delivery, airfreight goods are exposed every time they are loaded and unloaded onto trucks and aircraft.

While there are temperature controlled ULDs on the market, the low margin nature of much of the perishable industry meant these were too costly and more suited to pharmaceutical transport. Solano said airfreight can reduce the risk of losing customers by making sure staff are educated about the impact of temperature fluctuations on perishable cargo.

She gave the example of flowers that were going bad during air transport because they were stowed close to the cargo doors, meaning when a waypoint stop was made for more cargo to be loaded, they were exposed to heat.

Another example is perishable cargo being left on the apron for long periods while the aircraft is being loaded and unloaded. Qatar Airways senior manager cargo products David Beecham said it had avoided this problem by using temperature controlled vehicles to take cargo directly to and from the loading ramp. This meant perishable cargo would be exposed for as little as 40 seconds.

It had also introduced uniform standards of practice across its network. Solano added that the quality of transport service was becoming increasingly important because retailers, as opposed to producers, were taking charge of the supply chain. It wasn’t all bad news for air cargo though, both Solano and Beecham agreed that there were many types of perishable cargo would never be able to transfer over to seafreight, for example softer fruits.

Also, the perishable industry continues to expand due to population growth, a growing middle class wanting more luxury produce such as salmon, and people becoming more health conscious. The volume of transported horticulture and floriculture produce is expected to increase 460% by 2050 while foodstuff volumes are expected to increase 260%, Solano said.

Everyone around the world knows the tender feel and sweet smell that comes when you get in contact with a flower. Maintaining the quality of these gentle plants that bring color to our lives is an important aspect in all in the flower business. Kenya’s Floriculture Industry has currently embraced the importance of post harvest. A shift is noticeable from the perception that quality is only achieved from the field, with the current thinking being the need to maintain the quality even after harvest’ which is helping farmers have a higher bidding price at the market level. Losses at the post-harvest chain are more severe because they represent waste/loss of human effort, farm inputs and all other resources involved during production.

Losses in postharvest range from 5 – 60% with occasionally losses at 100%, for example due to Botrytis Cinerea infection during the rainy season.

There are some 50 species of the fungus Botrytis, however, Botrytis cinerea has the largest host range. Botrytis is often referred to as gray-mold because it produces a crop of gray fuzzy-appearing spores on the surface of infected tissues. Several days of cool, cloudy or rainy weather creates an ideal environment for Botryis infections during production in a full greenhouse or out in the field. However this fungus grows on dead or dying plant tissue anywhere conditions are right; in greenhouses, the field, packing sheds, coolers or during shipping.

Read more: Prevent and Cure Botrytis cinerea through a simple ‘Dipping Solution’

A sigh of expectation filled the air as one of the biggest chemical companies in the world, BASF, launched an innovative fungicide that combines well known active ingredient Dimethomorph with Initium to form a preventive shield against downy mildew in ornamentals.

Time almost audio recorded voice of Mr. Patrick Ngugi, Country Manager-Kenya, Crop Protection and public health asked, “Are you afraid of Downy mildew in your farm? Are you concerned by the ever increasing threat of resistance build up by fungicides? Are you afraid of scotching your flowers and leaving physical residue? Are you concerned about the cost of your choice product? Can you achieve your goals in farming without IPM? Is worker safety a priority for you? Each of the question received a resourcing ‘Yes’ from the over 150 growers in attendance. Today I stand in front you to offer your solution, Orvego 525 sc.

Read more: The Muse of Beauty and Convenience For the Grower in the Control of Downy Mildew Launched.

How the Kenyan flower industry thrives in the absence of formal contracts. Based on the research of Rocco Macchiavello and Ameet Morjaria.

Yevgenia Nayberg

Operating a business in a developing country is not always for the faint of heart. But new research suggests that long-term relationships between buyers and sellers can go a long way toward overcoming obstacles like political instability and weak governing institutions.

To build his case, Ameet Morjaria, an assistant professor of managerial economics and decision sciences at the Kellogg School, turned to the rose trade in Kenya—a thriving industry that he says has “managed to set up a supply line to the developed world. And they’ve achieved this in a relatively short period.”

Just how healthy is the rose industry in Kenya? Today, an estimated 500,000 Kenyans on over 100 flower farms depend on the trade for their livelihood. The nation’s flower exports have grown from about 11,000 tons in 1988 to more than 136,000 tons in 2014, making Kenya the third-largest exporter of cut flowers in the world. Many of these flowers head to the European Union, where they account for about a third of all flower sales.

The rose trade’s rapid growth has been driven by Kenya’s sunny climate, low labor costs, and strong air-transportation links to Europe. And this has all been done in the absence of formal contracts. Since flowers are highly fragile and perishable, contracts would be unenforceable, with buyers and sellers making claims that no court could verify.

Read more: No Contract? No Problem