joining the green revolution habariinspiration 26 msafiri Jane Barsby talks to Lillian Kanari to find out the story behind one of Nairobi's first organic food shops nQ When did you go organic? I was brought up on a farm, which, although none of us realised it at the time, was an organic farm. It wasn't a commercial venture – my father was a businessman. We used the old methods: very labour intensive, no chemicals, and everything we ate came from the farm. It wasn't until I left home that I realized that no other food tasted anywhere near so good. In fact most of it didn't taste of anything at all. It was the potatoes that really did it for me. nQ Why the potatoes? They just tasted real: I became a potato addict! When I came back from university in the UK ( where I studied Financial Economics), and after a few years in the hotel and tourism industry, I decided to experiment. I gave away bags of our potatoes to my friends and waited for the reaction. It was instant: they wanted sacks of them: and they wanted to pay! nQ Was that when you decided to open your own organic shop? No, I first tried persuading the hotel industry to use our potatoes. The chefs liked them – but they wouldn't use them because they were too expensive, and the supply chain wasn't regular enough. nQ So you stayed in the hotel industry? Yes, I was still young, I wanted to travel and see exotic places. nQ What changed your mind? After some ten years in the industry, I decided I wanted to be my own boss. I remembered the potatoes. Then I experimented with other farm produce like cabbage, carrots, apples, pears, turnips, meat and eggs. nQ Did they meet with the same reaction? More than that. I decided to go into business. My father had a few small farms just outside Nairobi; we had them all properly tested for such things as MRLs ( maximum residue levels). In 2007 we achieved Organic Certification. Thereafter we grew our crops using only organic fertilizers and manures: then we won two 1st prize awards at the Nakuru Agricultural Show for our organic garden peas and cabbages. Then I opened the shop. nQ Did you know anything about organic farming? Nothing, but I contacted the Kenyan Organic Agriculture Movement; they had done a series of tests on sample vegetables from the shops, supermarkets and open- air stalls around Nairobi. Amazingly, to me at least, they showed that 8 out of 10 samples revealed the presence of chemicals in excess of the European Union maximum residual levels. Some were 3 to 4 times higher. Another survey revealed that 30% of the samples were genetically modified. nQ Did that prompt your own revolution? Yes, I felt people had a right to know what they were eating, where the food had come from and what chemicals had been used to produce it. The phrase ' you are what you eat' became my mantra. nQ Do you think the average Kenyan consumer is ready to ' go organic'? Most Kenyans have, like me, grown up eating ' organic'. To them it's normal. What's more, they can tell the difference between good food and chemically altered food. Kenyans are very discerning. nQ So what has been the reaction to your organic shop? It's doing really well. I started in a small way, with a simple shop on the Ngong Road – but in order to penetrate the market, I offered to deliver baskets of organic produce to people's homes. That took off. In fact we're hard- pressed to meet the demand. Lots of people come to the shop too: now we're going to offer fresh- pressed juices and snacks – we're encouraging local arts, crafts and theatres: we're also firmly behind the concept of ' fair trade' – fair to the consumer, fair to the producer. I gave away bags of our potatoes to my friends and waited for the reaction. They wanted sacks: and they wanted to pay! Q Kalimoni Greens is located on Nairobi's Ngong Road, just outside the suburb of Karen Q Tel 236 1188, 884 802 Q Email: kalimonigreens@ gmail. com jane barsby