KENYA · GUIDE 0005 · EDITION 4.2
Kunde Leaves Harvesting: Field and Buyer Acceptance Records
Record leaf picking against the field objective
A kunde-leaf order should identify the crop, trial block and buyer’s accepted unit. Before setting a picking plan, discuss whether the plot is primarily for leaves, grain or a planned combination with a competent local adviser. This page does not prescribe an interval or claim a fixed effect of leaf picking on later grain output.
Link the block to the delivery
| Stage | Record | Decision supported |
|---|---|---|
| Planting | Source, block reference, date and intended crop objective | Which plot and plan the delivery belongs to |
| Picking | Date, block, labour and gross leaves picked | What work and output entered the process |
| Sorting | Unwanted stalks, rejects and accepted leaf quantity | Whether the buyer’s ingredient specification was met |
| Packing | Bunch count or weight, container and destination | Whether the right order was dispatched |
| Handover | Accepted quantity, receiving time and exceptions | What the buyer received and may owe for |
| Later field review | Remaining crop outcome and relevant observations | What actually happened under this season’s plan |
Ask the buyer to sort a properly identified sample into immediately usable leaves and unwanted stalks. Record the approved unit and composition. If a sample was sourced elsewhere, disclose that fact: it can define the order but cannot establish your own plot’s capacity.
Investigate different losses separately
A buyer rejecting excessive stalks suggests a specification or sorting problem. Leaves acceptable at packing but damaged at arrival require a route and handling review. A later difference in field outcome must be recorded against the block and season, rather than assumed to have a single cause. Do not invent a numerical grain loss or conclude that leaf picking had no effect from one observation.
Agree the receiving window and what happens to rejected or unsold stock before accepting an order. Record labour to pick and sort the actual accepted output, including a return journey when required. Keep unsuitable or unidentified material out of the order, and obtain qualified advice when crop identity or a plant-health problem is uncertain.
The World Vegetable Center’s Kenya manual is general cowpea-leaf production context; it does not certify your handling, establish local demand or guarantee a field outcome. Reconcile accepted deliveries with money actually collected before expanding commitments.