New KCC to train 2000 farmers on feed conservation

Nakuru,

Thursday, September 14, 2023,

KNA by Esther Mwangi

State-owned New KCC in collaboration with the County Government of Nakuru have rolled out an aggressive animal feed conservation campaign that targets to train over 2,000 farmers on more affordable and efficient methods of producing feeds to help reduce the overall cost of dairy farming in the county.

The New KCC Regional Sales Manager-Nakuru, Samuel Ngotho said the company will use dairy training courses to demonstrate to farmers how to reduce operational costs on the farm for maximum returns in addition to combating the effects of climate change.

Ngotho further said they will intensify training of farmers on silage production and forage preservation to ensure production of adequate feed and its availability, in both quantity and quality throughout the year.

Ngotho who was speaking during a meeting with Deputy Governor Mr David Kones said feeds were essential to dairy productivity adding that dairy farmers grapple with low quality and high cost of feeds production and noted that improving the quality of fodder significantly improves milk productivity.

The Regional Sales Manager regretted that majority of livestock farms in Kenya were pasture based and the seasonality of growth of pastures adversely affected continuity of available feed to livestock.

“Our farmers usually face difficulty in maintaining the pastures during the dry season and this silage can be used as a supplementary feed for livestock during these times,” he added. 

The manager further said that the state processor was banking on provision of extension services in all collection locations across the region to improve milk production adding that the firm was committed to supporting farmers get nutrition, feeding and feed production training to improve on their milk production.

At the same time, Mr. Ngotho asked dairy farmers to invest in breeds that not only produce more milk but that are also ‘feed efficient’ to beat dry weather.

Rising costs of commercial feeds, Mr Ngotho observed, drove the cost of production up with Feed prices continuing to rise even after the government waived the duty on imported raw materials.

Kenya’s dairy sector is estimated at 14 percent of the country’s agricultural gross domestic product (GDP), with Milk primarily being produced by smallholder farmers who account for 56 percent of total output.

It is estimated that the sector has 1.8 million smallholder farmers (about 80 percent of producers). The remaining 44 percent of milk output comes from commercial farmers.

Mr Ngotho who was accompanied by New KCC Nakuru County Plant Manager Mr Kelvin Karwega, explained that dairy cattle in Kenya consist of indigenous and exotic breeds, as well as crosses between the two varieties.

He further said that there were more than five million dairy cattle in the country producing an estimated four billion litres of milk annually, with the production projected to grow by about 150 percent by 2050.

While stating that Kenya has the highest per capita milk consumption in sub-Saharan Africa at 110 litres, the Deputy Governor David Kones said the demand, currently at eight billion litres, was also expected to grow with the population increase.

Mr Kones stated that fodder in the dairy farming sector had been a major cost driver, with farmers spending significant amounts of money on purchasing animal feeds.

He affirmed that Governor Susan Kihika’s administration was targeting to unlock the Sh. 25 billion potential in the dairy sub sector within the devolved unit by addressing a number of challenges that have affected quality and quantity of milk produced.

He said the County was working with various development partners and research institutions to tackle challenges holding back the dairy sub sector and cited challenges such as limited availability of quality and affordable feeds, inadequate infrastructure, including access roads and milk cooling facilities, limited extension services, low value addition to absorb surpluses and limited access to markets and market information.

Mr Kones said the devolved unit was working on new strategies to be adopted by farmers to increase milk production per animal to at least 15 litres which will translate to Sh 25 billion earnings annually.

 “To address the milk marketing difficulties, the county is engaging the majority of the producers who are currently practicing open grazing to move away from subsistence to commercial production with an aim of at least reaching the global daily average,” said Kones.

According to records from the County’s Agriculture, Livestock and Fisheries department the region has 310,000 dairy animals that yield an average of 5 litres per animal. This production is far below the global average of 24.5 litres per cow per day.

Courtesy; KNA