State plans to count number of dairy farmers for good planning

The government will conduct a census of dairy farmers and their livestock for better planning, Agriculture Cabinet Secretary Peter Munya has said.

Mr Munya said the collection of data which the ministry will undertake in collaboration with the county governments is meant to aid the government in mainstreaming the dairy sub sector.

Speaking at a local FM station, CS Munya said the registration will enable the government understand how to do pricing for dairy products, meet demand and address livestock diseases.

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“We will register all the dairy farmers and their livestock so that we can understand their numbers. We want to know the number of farmers and the cows, to understand how much milk they are producing and the prices they are fetching,” Munya said.

The CS said the county governments will be tasked with registering the dairy farmers and livestock at no cost.

“Registration will be done by county governments, who will in turn hand over the data to the Kenya Dairy Board as the regulator,” he said.

“This data will be used in the government’s plan for dairy farmers. We want to understand dairy production, supply and where the farmers are,” he said.

He said the registration of farmers will help the government know the source of milk, which will aid in traceability.

Monthly reports

In a bid to have better management of the sector, the CS said processors will be required to submit monthly reports on how much milk they buy.

Further, processors will undergo an inspection of their facilities to ensure safety of all dairy products, he said.

The government will review milk prices after every six months to ensure dairy farmers are not exploited, Munya added.

He said the new dairy regulations were aimed at ensuring dairy farmers profit from their ventures.

Munya said the government had set minimum prices that buyers will pay dairy farmers, to offset production costs and earn a profit.

“We have eight new regulations to protect dairy farmers, to ensure minimum guaranteed price,” Munya said.

The CS said the government was keen to protect farmers who suffered losses when there is a glut in the market.

He said the government had set the price of a litre must not go below Sh33 a litre even when there is a glut.