Small mills flourishing business with rural communities

The mill operators at their work station

Small grinding mills are very important machines for many communities in Africa because they can be operated anywhere.

There are various types of this milling tools ranging from the ancient types to modern used by communities across Africa Ugandan communities inclusive.

In report compiled by Mr Brian Clark and Alexandra Rottger curtsey of Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) under the title “FAO engineering working documents on small mills in Africa selection, installation and operation equipment”, it is stated that the earliest records of food production in Africa show that indigenous crops have long been milled to produce coarse flour for cooking.

Traditional crops such as yam, sorghum, millet and Maize have been ground for centuries either with a crude mortar and pestle fashioned from a tree stump or by using flat stones.

All these types of grinding systems are still in common use throughout Africa today.

Newer crops, such as rice, maize and cassava, have been introduced in more recent centuries, and new milling techniques have followed.

The report further states that in the mid nineteenth century, electric motors were invented and higher speed machines, such as hammer and plate mills began to replace traditional stone mills.

As electricity became available in many parts of Africa, motor driven mills gained in importance however, it was not until the introduction of the diesel engine in the early twentieth century that high speed mills were seen in more significant numbers across the continent.

A relatively low speed, water cooled diesel engine can for example power a hammer mill producing maize flour of acceptable quality.

These mills are in widespread use in rural parts of the world in areas where no electricity grid is available.

There are now a number of large scale mills owned by commercial companies or farmers in operation in most African countries today with the main aim of supplying flour to populations living in cities and towns.

They can remove roughage and produce refined white wheat flour mainly for bread making as well as roller mills used to mill maize into grits.

The principle of hulling is to shear the grain between different surfaces of high friction in order to separate the protective and hard outer layer of the grain from the softer starchy centre and the seed.

Hulling of maize and sorghum removes the hard outer husk and the bran of the grain.

Farmers growing crops such as cowpeas and various legume crops do hulling to remove the tough outer layer beneath the husk.

As this trend keeps changing in Africa with electricity supply being limited in rural communities including Uganda, farmers and other people interested in engaging in entrepreneur activities, are mainly using diesel generators for hurling and grinding.

One such community are people living in Kole District in Northern Uganda milling maize flour, millet and sorghum flour as well as hurling rice husks and below is their personal experience.

Entrepreneur’s experience

My name is Mr Joseph Okidi, I am a teacher by profession and a farmer as well. I am talking to you on behalf of the Family of Constantine Ogwang.

We are ten children of this family both male and female and we are teachers by profession, teaching in both Secondary Schools while others in Primary Schools.

Some of us have been teaching and farming for a long time but as responsibility keeps increasing, the income becomes meager to support the family. This led us to come up with the idea of purchasing two generators which use diesel for hurling maize and rice as well as grinding maize flour, millet flour and sorghum flour for the community living in Bala County, Kole district.

It was the responsibility of each one of us contributing towards the purchase of these generators that cost Shs22 million.

We purchased them last year and started the business straight away. One machine is used for threshing while the other for grinding flour.

Another machine purchased much earlier for threshing is also used for mobile service where we transport it to farmer sites in districts close to Kole like Apach, Amolata and Lira among others.

My brother Mr George Alele who resigned from teaching to take full charge of our entrepreneurial business called Holding Company is the general manager and he usually takes charge of going to hurl maize and rice in farmer fields and right now he is in Apach district.

We usually charge farmers Shs250 per kg for hurling service and Shs100 per kg for milling and in a day we mill about 2000 kg but during harvesting time the amount of kilogramme may be more.

Our family farm where we mainly grow maize for commercialization is in Omolo Diang village in Kole district.

These generators have helped the community here because electricity is major challenge in Bala Sub County.

Last year we saw the ministry of energy officials fixing electricity polls in Bala trading centre all the way from Lira town which is about 15 km but up to now they have not done wiring so we have resorted to using Solar for lighting and diesel powered generators for our business.

We usually service the machines every month spending about Shs500, 000 for servicing out of Shs2.5 million obtained monthly from the business. We purchase diesel at Shs3, 000 per litre and 100 litres is used in four days.

During harvesting time we are able to hurl rice husks weighing 500 kg per day.

The idea of this business is from our father who is a retired teacher aged 76.

He initiated the family members to start the business and we saw sense in it the reason we solicited funds as his children and now it is helping the entire community in this village and those far.

My name is George Abili one of the younger sons of the family aged 30 and I am the assistant manager of Holding Company.

I like managing this business and so I retired from teaching because the salary I used to earn was small..

I was to teaching in a school called Rubanga Angeyo Primary School in Ngai village but I retired two years ago because the number of farmers bringing their produce for hurling and milling has been overwhelming.

All what I can say is that the farming community who lack main grid electricity should never give up on entrepreneurial business because solar energy and use of diesel powered machines can be a better alternative.