At the sleepy Kyandula trading centre in Kitui South, a group of women gathers around a specialised posho mill, readying a sack full of sunflower seeds.

One woman powers on the electric machine, and it bursts into life. Its grain-grinding jaws rotate purposefully, and the woman eagerly processes the seeds into oil.  

As the mill churns, Rhoda Musembi bends over and scoops a jarful of sunflower seeds. Carefully, she pours them into the mill’s gaping mouth. She scoops again and again, feeding every seed into the crushing chamber with practised ease. The mill swallows the contents and grinds the seeds into a fine pulp as the air fills up with a nutty aroma of fresh oil.