The Government approved the importation of 25 million litres of milk last year after the country experienced a 29 per cent fall in milk supply.
The milk was imported in powder form after decrease in supply which, according to the Kenya Dairy Board (KDB) was as a result of drought.
KDB managing director Margaret Kibogy said the decision to import the milk was based on the need to stabilise local prices which had gone up.
“Due to the drought in 2017, the Government approved importation of milk powder to supplement the deficit in the local supply of milk,” said Ms Kibogy. “That said, we also did export three million kilogrammes of milk in the same year. Exports for the previous year 2016 was two million kilos, representing a 45 per cent growth,” she added.
Livestock Principal Secretary Andrew Tuimur also painted a grim picture of the situation revealing that of the average 5.2 million litres of milk that Kenya produces annually, local processors can only manage to process 30 per cent.
“We have incorporated milk powder as a strategic food reserve. Yet our processing capacity is still low. And we are forced to import,” said Mr Tuimur.
The PS also poured cold water on the dairy sector. He cited high cost of milk production, poor organisation of small-scale dairy producers, poor quality of animal feeds and fluctuation in prices as problems hindering the sector’s growth.
“We cannot directly interfere to stabilise prices since it’s a liberalised market. But we are doing all we can to get farmers to face these challenges especially lowering the cost of animal feeds in order to lower the cost of milk,” said Tuimur.
He said for higher milk production and lower costs, farmers can be taught to make own animal feeds.
