By JOSEPH MASHA
The Government says many families in Kilifi may suffer from hunger due to anticipated poor maize crop harvest this season.
Kilifi District Agriculture Officer Jane Kanamu said some farmers are unlikely to harvest anything after their maize crop weathered before maturity.
She blamed the situation on low rainfall that also came late compared to the other years.
“A survey by the Ministry of Agriculture shows that maize harvest this season, which is the staple food for residents, is going to fall due to lack of enough rainfall.
Due to that, we anticipate hunger will hit many families,” said Kanamu.
Modern methods
Briefing the press on food crops performance this season, the officer said though farmers’ cultivated big portions of land and applied modern farming methods like ploughing with tractors and applied fertilisers, the expected end product is low due to lack of sufficient rain.
“At the Coast, rains are normally expected in March, but this year the rains came at the end of May and cut off after a very short period,” she said.
The officer said for those who managed to plant early, had their maize crop suffer from lack of water, which affected its growth, resulting to poor yields.
However, the officer noted with the on going little rains, farmers who planted late could harvest something but on condition that the showers continue coming.
Low Food security
