Top 30 Agribusiness Enterprises You Can Start In 2020 & Become Rich

Global population is increasing but land remains fixed. This means that the demand for food is set to increase, something that will leave smart agripreneurs wealthy.

It is believed that the next generation of billionaires will be from the agribusiness sector and there are many agribusiness enterprises/ideas you can tap in and become rich.

Many promising agripreneurs normally ask: What profitable agribusiness enterprise can I venture into? What are the most profitable crops?

The fact is that many agribusiness ideas are profitable. It is all about how you go about it; you must do your research right about the market for the enterprise you venture into and its future prospects. Above all, you must have passion for the idea you choose to go into.

Needless to say, when you pick an agribusiness idea from this article, make further research before heavily investing in your hard-earned money. Some of these ideas are short term/medium while others are long term.

In no particular order, below are agribusiness enterprises that you can venture into in 2020 and help you become a millionaire or even a billionaire. Read on!

Cabbages

Are you looking for quick cash? Think about growing cabbages. Cabbages mature in three months and market is readily available in many townships spread across Uganda.

With an investment capital of about Shs1.5m, you can earn about Shs4m net profit from a well looked after acre of cabbages.

This enterprise is recommended during the dry spell especially for those with a permanent source of water.

Sugarcane

Sugarcane takes about 12 months to have the first harvest, and then eight to ten months for the following harvests. Gowa type is recommended here.

With a spacing of 3ft*3ft, you can have 5,000 holes in an acre. As the canes grow, new ones develop but farmers must prune them to 5.

If you harvest five canes from each plant, you will harvest 25,000 sugarcanes and if you sell each at Shs500 at farm gate price, you can earn a gross profit of Shs12m. Investment capital can be about Shs2m.

Onions

Onions are profitable but can also be hard to grow if you don’t have water.

Maturity period is about three months. You also need to identify the best varieties.

With a well looked after acre, you can harvest as high as 4000kgs of onions. A kilogram ranges between Shs2500 to Shs6000. Taking Shs2500, you can earn Shs10m in gross profit from an acre. Investment capital can’t exceed Shs2m.

 Pumpkins

Pumpkin farming isn’t labour and capital intensive. With an investment capital of about Shs1m, a farmer can earn over Shs6.7m.

This is because an acre will accommodate 450 pumpkin plants since spacing is 10ft*10ft (3 metres) apart.   Considering the fact that one pumpkin plant can produce a minimum of 10 pumpkins, 450 plants will give you 4,500 pumpkins and if each is sold at the farm gate price of Shs1,500, you will earn Shs6.75m in a space of about seven months. Like all other crops, ensure that you know where the market is for this crop.

Bitter tomatoes/Entula

Bitter tomatoes mature in three months.

An acre can accommodate 5,000 plants. You can harvest 5-7 bags a week.  A bag goes for between Shs20,000 and Shs120,000 depending on the season.

Passion fruits

Passion fruits are quite profitable and from 6-8 months after planting, you start harvesting. All you need is a good variety and a source of water for irrigation during the dry spell.

At the start, you need about Shs5m to invest in an acre and with good agronomic practices, you can easily become a millionaire in a shortest time possible.

Papaws

You can also make money by growing papaws.

It takes about 12 months to start harvesting. Papaws can last for 2-3 years.

An acre can accommodate about 900 plants if you use spacing of 5ft*5ft.

Every week, you can pick at least two papaws and the harvest can go for 24 weeks.  This means 900 papaw plants can give you 43,200 papaws in a year. If you sell each papaw at farm gate price of Shs200, you can earn as high as Shs8.64m gross profit in a year.

Plantain/Gonja

Plantain locally known as Gonja is a popular delicacy in towns like Kampala and for travelers. You can find it along all major highways in Uganda but there are a few farmers growing this crop.

It takes about 18 months to start harvesting.

Taking 8*8ft spacing, you can have over 700 plants in an acre.

A bunch of plantain goes for Shs10, 000- Shs30, 000 at farm gate price. This is one crop where you can make money.

Bananas/ matooke

Matooke farming can be lucrative if best agronomic practices are applied. Most importantly, you need best varieties.

An acre can accommodate over 450 matooke plants. This means that in your first harvest, you expect about 450 bunches worth Shs4.5m. That is if a bunch is sold at Shs10,000.

The following harvest/year, you expect to harvest at least two bunches from each stem and these should be bigger than the first harvest.

This means you will have a minimum of 900 bunches which can be sold on farm at between Shs15,000-Shs20,000. This will fetch you Shs9m if we take a minimum price of Shs15, 000.

In the third year/harvest, you should be harvesting three bunches from each plant.

Coffee

This is a long term project because coffee’s life span is 50 years.

Whereas government recommends spacing of 10ft*10ft for Robusta, farmers are increasingly reducing on the spacing to have more plants in an acre.  With 8ft by 8ft, you can have as many as 650 plants in an acre.  You will get serious harvest after three to five years. Each plant will give you 5-15kgs of kiboko (dry unshelled coffee). Taking 650 plants and an average of 10kgs per tree, you can harvest 6,500kgs annually.

 At Shs2000 per kg, you can earn a minimum of Shs13m from an acre per year. This can increase if you have some sort of irrigation since there are two flowering seasons in a year.

It is also important to note that production increases year by year as branches grow bigger in size.

Tomatoes

Tomatoes are one of the crops that can make you quick cash, but also one that can make you dread farming for you can make terrible losses if not calculative.

But fear not for many have become millionaires by growing tomatoes, a key ingredient in preparing a good meal. What you need is a good variety and plant at the right time. According to Godfrey Kigoye, an agronomist and Consultant, seeds of a good variety that can be enough for an acre will cost above Shs800, 000.

He however says one can cut on costs by getting seeds from tomatoes of a good variety from a trusted farmer or source.

He advises planting at the end of April or in November to avoid bumper harvest when the market is overcrowded. This means you will need to do some irrigation.

You can start harvesting at 90 days and the process goes on for three months. Up to maturity, it requires an investment of Shs3.9m-Shs4.5m. A farmer can harvest a minimum of 120 boxes and going by Shs200, 000 per box, a farmer will earn a gross of Shs24m. Good return on investment!

Maize

Many farmers have been disappointed with maize, thanks to ignorance! Fact is you can get money from maize farming.

All you need is a good variety, proper spacing and pests and diseases control. Kigoye says an acre of maize requires about 10 bags of manure.

The price of manure varies according to locality, but the average is Shs5000. He says when maize is at knee height, a farmer should apply a pesticide to kill the maize stock borer and every two weeks apply a foliar fertilizer.

This helps the plant develop a coating that prevents sunshine from damaging the crops. When about to flower, Kigoye says, a farmer should apply a foliar fertilizer that helps maize cobs grow big and strong.

With an investment of about Shs1.5m or less, a farmer can harvest between 3-3.5 tonnes in four months. Going by the current prices, a farmer can earn an average of over Shs3m.

It is important to note that, the more the acreage, the less the investment capital and the higher the return on investment.

Watermelon

Like cabbages, watermelons mature in three months. All you need is identify good varieties and plan your season well.

It is possible to harvest 4,500 sizeable melons from an acre.

If you sell each at Shs1500, an acre will give you a gross profit of Shs6.7m.

Remember we have only considered big melons.

Investment capital for this project can be in the region of Shs1m.

Yams (Bwayise)

Yams grow well in waterlogged areas and their maturity period is five to six months. An acre can accommodate 10,000 holes/ plants on plain land.  Each hole is a yam and as you harvest, more stems/yams sprung up about three in number, which will also be harvested in six months’ time.

If you sell each yam at farm gate price of Shs1000, you can earn 10m from an acre. Investment capital is about Shs2m.

Irish Potatoes

Irish potatoes is one of the crops that can easily make one a millionaire-only if they do the right thing. In Uganda, Irish potato growing is increasingly becoming commercial, thanks to the growing demand resulting from the increase in townships, population and hospitality industry.

For farmers looking to venture into the business of growing Irish potatoes, choose the right seed potatoes is the step in the right direction.

Start with organic, certified disease-free seed potatoes obtained from a catalog or farm store. (Supermarket potatoes that have been treated with a sprout-retardant are not suitable for planting).

If you buy from a farm store, try to select tubers which have already sprouted. Otherwise, pre-sprout them by simply laying them out on your kitchen counter. Pre-sprouted potatoes can be harvested a few weeks earlier than their non-sprouted kin. You can earn a minimum of Shs5m with investment capital not exceeding Shs1m.

Fish Farming

Over the years, quite a few people have made fortunes from fish farming, as the population is swelling and protein needs are far outstripping the available supply. Food is always a winner in any country or environment if done well. Fish farming is a sure bet business if you put the right structures in place. To kick start the enterprise, you need to learn more about it from an already established fish farmer.

Joyce Kayongo is one of the women making money in Aquaponics fish farming on her one acre of land which hosts her house and what is supposed to be the compound is covered with water tanks containing the fish.

Mushroom Farming

Mushrooms are rich in vitamins, protein and minerals; they are favored over meat or even fish by some people, considering the nutritional value and superior health implications. There are two main broad categories of mushrooms; the edible and the non-edible (which is poisonous).

The start-up requirements are a mushroom shed or house, sawdust, polythene bags, spawns/mushrooms seeds, Urea/nitrogen fertilizer, lime, water, ceiling machine, weighing scale, extra hands, refrigerator.

 If you have a clean space in your home, you can start your own mushroom farming business today and start selling mushrooms to hotels, exporters and pharmaceutical companies in the next 21 days. Jackie Bazooba, a mushroom farmer based in Seeta, Mukono can help you kick start this project.

Poultry Farming

Technology has enabled many to operate profitable poultry, yet make it free of odor that a neighbor next door will not know you operate a poultry farm. This is a business you can start from one room, car park or from that abandoned property near you with 50 to 500 birds, depending on the cash at hand. You can choose to rear layers or broilers. Both have market.

Urban Agriculture or Crop Cultivation

Urban agriculture is the practice of cultivating, processing and distributing food in, or around, a village, town or city. Urban agriculture in addition can also involve animal husbandry, aquaculture, agro-forestry and horticulture. Urban agriculture contributes to food security and food safety in two ways: First it increases the amount of food available to people living in cities and secondly, it allows fresh vegetables and fruits and meat products to be made available to urban consumers. Urban and peri-urban agriculture are generally seen as sustainable agriculture. All you need is some training on how you can use those unused spaces at home.

 Selling Fresh Fruits

With a little professionalism and good public appearance or hygiene, you can make money in this business because a lot of people love to eat fresh fruits.

Fresh juice is also marketable with a lot of people preferring natural, healthy products compared to manufactured juices and soda.

Grocery Service

In today’s busy and sophisticated world, convenience has become a real business opportunity. Rice, beans, yams, plantain, potatoes, onions, pepper, oil etc can bought in bulk, cleaned and packaged in specific portions and sold direct to end users. Many people who are unable to find time to shop will be relieved to know that they can just make a phone call and the groceries are delivered. If you can get them to pay up-front, then you are better up with cash flow.

Sweet potatoes

These take between four to six months to mature. They grow well in warm and moist loam soils with a free draining.

Sweet potatoes are commonly used as food in homes and also as a snack. Besides, they are famous for vitamin A for good vision, Vitamin C for wound healing and maintaining good skin.

Herbs, Flowers Framing and Gardening

Walking through a grocery store, a herb store, a health food store and even in gardening sections of home centers, you will find herbs in their dry forms to be used by consumers.

Using the right equipment in your home garage or shed or by building a green house, you can start and raise both herbs and plants to resell to larger outlets and to the consumer as well.

If you really have the space in your landscape and outdoor garden, creating gardens where you will grow plants and drying them out will add so much to your inventory and you can make great amounts of money selling dried flowers to retailers, wholesalers and even to flower shops themselves.

 Livestock Feed Production

A lot of people are going into livestock farming like fish farming, pig farming, poultry farming and a whole lot of others. As a smart investor, you can start producing feed for people to feed their animals. However, you must ensure that you carry out a lot of research and come up with a product that is rich in nutrients and would promote quick growth and good health of the animals.

To start a livestock feed production business, you will need a grinding machine, mixing machine, weighing machine, customized packing bags and raw materials for production.

Flour Milling

You can start your own flour milling business and start converting grains like wheat, corns, millet and cassava into flour. Wheat flour is a product that is in high demand in the baking industry.

Flour milling is something you can do from the convenience of your home if you have a small space. If you do not have space within your home, you can rent a small space and start from there and as your business expands, you can opt for a larger space.

You can easily get wheat, corns, millet or cassava from local farmers, then learn how to process it and make it into flour. Some of the procedures include cleaning, grading and separation, tempering and then grinding the wheat.

Groundnut Processing

Groundnut is a popular snack that is loved by very many people. Take a trip to a nearby supermarket and you will see bottled groundnuts branded and packaged in a fanciful way.

Very little effort goes into frying and packaging those groundnuts for sale and distribution.

You can start your own groundnut processing and packaging business with a little investment capital.

And of course, you can do it from the comfort of your home. If you can start your own groundnut farm, you will get access to groundnuts cheaply but if you don’t have a space for groundnut farming, you can still get cheap raw groundnuts from farm markets.

Agricultural Equipment Leasing

With the increase in people going into the agricultural business, you can make money from hiring out equipment like tractors, ploughs, sprayers, harvesters and irrigation machines to farmer.

Hatchery

Another very good business for young entrepreneurs is starting a hatchery for eggs and selling day-old chicks to poultry farmers.

 Bee Keeping and Honey Production

Honey is manufactured in one of the world’s most efficient factories, the Beehive. Bees may travel as far as 55,000 miles and visit more than two million flowers to gather enough nectar to make just a pound of honey.

You can sell your honey to high net-worth individuals, busy executives who prefer to take pure honey than sugar.

Goat Rearing

Grace Bwogi, one of the successful goat farmers in the country says that goat farming business is profitable if you do the right thing.

If you want rear goats commercially, you need a sizeable piece of land. Bwogi says one can rear 15-20 goats on free range system on an acre of land.

“On zero grazing, you can have 40 goats on an acre though it is tedious and costly to look for feeds,” she says.

For those with land, they can start rearing goats with at least Shs3m-Shs5m.

“If you want to rear goats on a commercial basis, I would advise you to start with 50-100 goats. If you start the project in January, you will have 100-200 goats in January next year,” she says.

“To cut on costs, don’t construct a structure that is so fancy. You can use locally available materials and upgrade later,” she says, adding that beginners shouldn’t start with hybrid goats; they should start with local breeds.

Green Pepper, Sweet Pepper and Egg Plants

The seeds for the above crops that can cover an acre will cost a minimum of Shs100, 000. All you need is to get the right variety, do a nursery bed (pot) and transplant into a well prepared field.

This means a field that is well fertilized with manure. These crops that can grow in open field and green house can make you incredible money when grown during off season (given the fact that a few people in Uganda carryout irrigation).

This means planting in April or November is ideal.  After planting, one should manage pests and diseases well. Under best agronomic practices, Kigoye says a farmer can harvest 3-4 bags per week.

The harvest can go on up to two months. Today, a bag of green pepper goes for Shs150, 000 at farm gate price but during bumper harvest, it can go for as low as Shs20, 000!

Sweet pepper is bought in kilograms and a kilo goes for Shs10, 000 going by the current market prices. If one harvests an average of 100 bags of green pepper, they will earn a gross of Shs15m in three months. Kigoye says investment capital for the above crops is estimated at a maximum of Shs2m for an acre.

Dairy Farm

Dairy farming is a class of agricultural, or animal husbandry enterprise, for long-term production of milk, usually from dairy cows but also from goats and sheep, which may be either processed on-site or transported to a dairy factory for processing and eventual retail sale.

It is a lucrative business, which can fetch big profits due to the increasing and ready market for dairy products.

The production capacity is based on the quality and number of animals raised on the farm. However, for 5 Friesian Cows, 100ltrs of milk will be produced as each Dairy Animal is capable of producing 20 Litres of milk per day.

This project will be operated locally on small scale, i.e. 5 Friesian Cows operated on 5 acres of land. The Fixed Capital Investment required to start this project is approximately US$ 73,521, generating a revenue potential of USD 374,400 per annum. The net profit margin is 6% with a payback period of 2 years.

There is a high demand for dairy products in Urban Centers of Uganda especially in schools, hospitals, households, and Dairy processing industry. However, they may also be exported.

Piggery

This business idea is for rearing pigs aimed at production and sale of 360 pigs annually. The revenue potential is estimated at US $ 86,850 per year with a profit margin of 75%.

The total capital investment for the project is US $ 11,900 and the payback period is almost 5 months. The business risk involved in this idea is the high rate of infection, which spreads quickly among the animals. However, this can be mitigated by increasing the animal’s resistance e.g. by improving the quality of feeds.

The structure of the pig market is wide throughout the year in butcheries as pork is popular among the public. There are several pork joints in the city and upcountry making demand for pork high.

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