How to process bushera

Millet should be harvested once the grasses and seed heads turn golden brown. It can be harvested either by hand or by the use of a mechanical thresher.

After harvesting, it needs about two weeks to dry well to ensure quality production. To save seeds, cut the mature seed cluster from the stem. The mature seeds will be swollen and are released easily from the cluster by simple rubbing or threshing.

Allow the seed heads to dry for a few days to facilitate easy removal of the seeds. Once they are released from the stem, allow them to dry for a few more days before packing. The millet harvest should be packed in sacks and stored in a cool and dry place.

Bushera, major Beverage

Bushera is one of the main by-products of sorghum and millet.

A kilogramme of fermented sorghum costs between sh2,000 and sh3,000.

However, to process six litres of bushera, you need only one-and-a-half kilogrammes, which costs about sh4000. At sh15,000 for the six litres, it means the farmer multiplies the earnings by over 150%.

Harvest the mature sorghum and soak it in water overnight.

This can be done using a drum or a big saucepan. Thereafter, the fermenting process starts. This involves covering it with banana leaves for three to four days.

You can also add mud on top of the banana leaves. Mud helps generate heat to ferment the grains. After four days, it is then dried. By now, it has changed from red to a blackish colour.

When it is dried, take it to a mill and process it into flour. The flour is then put in a big saucepan, where hot water is added.

The mixture is stirred for some time until it creates a paste. It is kept as a paste for 30 minutes to one hour, then more water is added and more stirring done, before it is left overnight. Cover the saucepan or drum.

The next day, the mixture is pasteurised by boiling it and then a preservative added to make it last longer. Use sodium benzonite as the preservative. The bushera is now ready for packing.

Some pack in 200ml bottles, while others use 500ml bottles.

These bottles cost sh300 each. The beverage is now commonly sold in supermarkets and stores around the country.

Compiled by Joshua Kato (editor, Harvest Money) and Betty Businge (makes packed bushera from millet)