Meet Mwatumbi

Farmer Social Impact
Location:
Lunga Lunga, Kenya
Date:
16 March 2022

In the Lunga Lunga region of Kenya, smallholder farmer Mwatumbi lives with his family in the Mtune village. Smallholder farmers typically own fewer than five acres of land and personally farm that land. The doTERRA Co-Impact Sourcing® model aims to empower these smallholder farmers, making a positive, impactful difference in their lives and the lives of their families.

Mwatumbi first farmed aromatic crops for essential oils in 2017. When the opportunity to grow aromatic crops was introduced to his community, many farmers resisted, not recognizing their value. Mwatumbi, however, saw the life-changing potential. “When I started this project,” he said, “I had 1.25 acres of land. I decided to commit a quarter acre to tea tree and half an acre to lemon eucalyptus. Over time, with money from the harvests, I’ve managed to add more land. I now own three acres of land and plan to buy even more with the returns I get from my essential oil crops.” Though Mwatumbi focuses primarily on essential oil crops, he also grows mangos, cowpeas, green grams, maize, coconut, pineapples, and oranges.