Farmers receive free certified planting seeds

Tharaka Nithi government has launched a distribution of 70 tonnes of free certified seeds to farmers aimed at increasing their yields.

Speaking while flagging off the consignment, Governor Muthomi Njuki said every farmer will get a two-kilo bag for planting and will be required to buy the rest, for those who have big farms.

Njuki urged farmers to use certified seeds to increase production and ensure food security in the county.

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He noted that most farmers end up with low yields because they use low-quality seeds and said it was time to adopt decent farming to realise better yields.

"A 2kg bag of seeds goes for Sh500 in the market but we have decided to buy at least a bag for each farmer to set an example," Njuki said, adding that the seed initiative is meant to help small-scale farmers increase their yield.

He said many people could have opted to get cash but with the seeds, they will harvest more bags to make them earn more.

Peter Kiburi from Bayer East Africa company that has partnered with the county in the programme said the variety the company supplied matures within 90 days and can survive in moderate rainfall areas.

Njuki thanked the company for its efforts to mitigate famine in the county, saying before devolution, some parts of the county were mostly relying on food donations from the national government and NGOs but this is becoming a thing of the past.

"We have introduced proper programmes that will change our way of production. We have also been encouraging farmers to produce more food," said Njuki.

Agriculture executive Njue Njagi asked farmers to plant the seeds early since there is a probability of low rainfall this season.