For small-scale farmers across Africa, 2026 has been a year of mounting financial pressure. The war involving Iran disrupted shipping through the Strait of Hormuz, a critical chokepoint for international trade, and the flow of fertilizer exports was dramatically reduced. As a result, prices for commercial fertilizer spiked around the world. In African countries, where smallholder farmers often operate on thin margins and are highly sensitive to sudden cost increases, the impact was felt almost immediately.
But on a 12-acre farm outside Lusaka, Zambia, Kanangwa Newlove has remained largely insulated from the crisis. For years, she has fertilized her crops with bokashi, a homemade fermented compost with deep roots in traditional Asian farming. While her neighbors scrambled to afford imported fertilizer, Newlove continued to nurture her fields with a recipe she produces herself, using locally available materials and a fermentation process that transforms organic waste into a nutrient-rich soil amendment.
Newlove's farm, called Loctaguna Organics, is a testament to what she calls a "labor of love." Shady fruit trees are scattered across her fields. During the growing season, long tomato vines drape over trellises. She tends tidy rows of corn, pumpkins, and a local leafy green known as blackjack, along with 11 different varieties of lettuce. What began as a modest effort to share vegetables with coworkers has grown into a full-scale operation that supplies restaurants, airlines, and supermarkets.
"I started taking vegetables to my workmates, and before I knew it I was supplying the supermarket," Newlove said. "It went on and on."
Her success story stands in stark contrast to the broader challenges facing farmers in 2026. The Iran war choked off the Strait of Hormuz, dramatically halting international trade shipments, including fertilizer. Prices spiked globally, and the effects rippled quickly through African agricultural economies. Smallholder farmers, who often lack the financial reserves to absorb sudden cost increases, were among the hardest hit.
Bokashi offers an alternative. Unlike traditional composting, which relies on oxygen-loving microbes to break down organic matter over weeks or months, bokashi uses anaerobic fermentation. Farmers mix organic waste — such as kitchen scraps, crop residues, and animal manure — with a special inoculant, often containing lactic acid bacteria and yeasts. The mixture is sealed in an airtight container and left to ferment for a couple of weeks. The result is a nutrient-dense, pre-digested material that can be buried in soil or used as a liquid fertilizer.
The technique originated in Japan and other parts of Asia, where farmers have used it for centuries to improve soil health and recycle nutrients. In recent years, it has gained a following among organic growers in Africa, Latin America, and beyond. For farmers like Newlove, bokashi is not just a cost-saving measure — it is a way to build resilient, self-sufficient farming systems that do not depend on volatile global supply chains.
At a market in Zambia, organic vegetables share table space with bags of homemade bokashi fertilizer that sell for about $2.50 each. The modest price point makes it accessible to even the most cash-strapped farmers, and the product has become a small but growing source of income for producers who have mastered the technique. For customers, the appeal is twofold: they get a reliable soil amendment at a fraction of the cost of commercial fertilizer, and they support local, sustainable agriculture.
The timing of bokashi's rise in popularity is no coincidence. When fertilizer prices spiked earlier this year, many farmers in Zambia and neighboring countries found themselves unable to afford the inputs they needed for the planting season. Some cut back on the amount of land they cultivated. Others switched to lower-value crops that required fewer nutrients. A few, like Newlove, were able to maintain production because they had already invested in alternative methods.
Agricultural experts note that bokashi is not a perfect substitute for all commercial fertilizers. It tends to be lower in concentrated nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium than synthetic products, and it requires more labor to produce and apply. But for smallholder farmers who are already practicing organic methods or who want to reduce their reliance on expensive imports, it offers a viable path forward. It also improves soil structure over time, increasing organic matter content and water-holding capacity, which can help crops withstand drought.
Newlove has become something of an evangelist for the method. Her farm runs courses to educate NGOs, students, and other farmers on organic farming techniques, including bokashi production. She believes that the knowledge is as valuable as the fertilizer itself, empowering farmers to take control of their own fertility management rather than depending on unpredictable global markets.
"I started taking vegetables to my workmates, and before I knew it I was supplying the supermarket," Newlove said, reflecting on how her farm grew from a small side project into a thriving business. "It went on and on."
Her story illustrates a broader lesson: when global supply chains falter, local knowledge and traditional techniques can provide a buffer. The Iran war may have driven up fertilizer prices around the world, but for farmers who have embraced bokashi, the crisis has only reinforced the value of self-reliance.
As 2026 draws to a close, the fertilizer market remains unsettled. Shipping through the Strait of Hormuz has not fully recovered, and prices are still higher than they were before the conflict. For smallholder farmers across Africa, the coming planting seasons will bring difficult decisions about how much to invest in commercial inputs and how much to rely on alternatives. Bokashi, once a niche technique, is now part of that calculus — a humble, fermented reminder that some of the most effective solutions are also the most local.
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