Tucked away in a little corner of Kisumu overlooking the small bay which is part of and opens up to Lake Victoria, very close to the Kisumu Yacht Club is a man who is producing spirulina. Jagpal Sandhu is the Director and a self made producer of micro-algae spirulina and Dunga is the location in Kisumu where he grows it.
Dunga Spirulina” that is the name of the small enterprise which has the capacity of growing/harvesting up to 5kg a day. The spirulina is grown, harvested, dried, ground and packaged all in the small compound right next to the lake in Dunga – Kisumu. Dunga Spirulina is the first company in the EA region to successfully grow Spirulina sustainably. Jagpal unlike other organizations and NGOs in Kisumu has decided to open his spirulina to a different market than the one of the sick and malnourished. He sells his spirulina in a nicely vacuum sealed package to the higher market as a natural food supplement. As demand grows so too does his production facility. The company is building more ponds and placing in the ponds a motorized paddle wheel to facilitate movement of the algae in the ponds. Thick plastic covers are being placed on the ponds to avoid cross-breeding and contamination of the spirulina. Dunga Spirulina is currently available in;
- Healthy U Stores Countrywide (Kenya),
- Healthy U in Nairobi – Junction, Sarit Centre, Yaya Centre, T-Mall, Westgate, Village Market.
- Healthy U Express Stores inside Nakumatt: Junction, Karen, Ngong Road, Mega, Lifestyle, Village Market, Westgate, Embakasi.
- Healthy U in Kisumu – Nakumatt Nyanza and Mega City.
- Healthy U in Mombasa – Nyali and Likoni.
- Zucchini in Naiorbi – ABC Place, Junction and Village Market,
- Elixir Health in Village Market – on top of the food court.
- Patsons Chemist in Swan Centre, and Maruti Pharmacy in Kisumu
- And will soon be available in other East African countries.
Jagpal decided to start growing his own spirulina after having attended a basic course on spirulina growing and harvesting at IIMSAM Headquarters just outside Kisumu. IIMSAM gave Jagpal the basic knowledge on how to grow spirulina. He used that knowledge to establish his farm and produce spirulina in an open pond system. Dunga Spirulina is highly nutritious and provides you with all the protein, vitamins, minerals and micro nutrients needed by your body on a daily basis. Dunga Spirulina is 100% Pure Spirulina Powder.
Various images taken on-site at Dunga Spirulina
Tony Piccolo – Aquatic Biofuels Specialist, Rome – Italy
Aquatic Biofuel Specialist
