KENYA · GUIDE 0015 · EDITION 4.2
Radish growing - Pricing, break-even and cash flow
Price an accepted unit, not an activity title
Start with this sale unit: bunch or pack.
Treat radish as an order-led accompaniment for a named dish or retail niche, choosing a clear portion format before dedicating another bed to the crop.
A quotation needs the accepted quantity or scope, exclusions, completion point, delivery arrangement and payment schedule. Without that specification, two apparently similar prices may pay for different work.
Build the direct-cost sheet
- seed
- harvest timing
- unsold stock
Include unsold specialty stock and the effort of finding small repeat customers, since a short production cycle does not itself create a broad local market.
| Calculation | How to use it |
|---|---|
| Variable cost per accepted unit | Direct inputs, labour, delivery and measured losses divided by accepted units. |
| Contribution per unit | Agreed selling price minus variable cost per unit. |
| Period operating surplus | Contribution from units sold minus fixed overhead for the same period. |
| Break-even units | Fixed overhead divided by positive contribution, rounded up. |
Count rejected output, unsold stock and correction time. Keep fixed overhead in a consistent period; a daily contribution cannot be compared directly with a monthly overhead figure. If contribution is zero or negative, extra sales do not establish a workable break-even point.
Reconcile the cash separately
A customer's unpaid balance cannot pay today's supplier bill. List actual collections, advance payments, supplier deadlines, refunds and recurring bills by date. Separate refundable deposits and money held for an uncompleted commitment from funds freely available for expansion.
Planting successive beds before proving repeat demand can turn a visually successful harvest into stock that familiar vegetable traders cannot readily explain or sell locally.
Test a weaker outcome
Recalculate with fewer accepted units, a delayed customer collection or a higher input quotation. Change one assumption at a time to see which constraint matters. Use the actual pilot record: Keep a customer-use diary showing the dish served, portion quantity, feedback after service and the interval before a genuine repeat order for the same radishes.
Do not interpret the invented financial teaching exercise in the complete manuscript as a market price or predicted income. Replace its assumptions before using it for a real decision. The public planning tool can help with arithmetic; it does not validate the inputs.