The Government is set to overhaul the dairy industry value chain and come up with a strategy to improve animal breeding and increase milk production by the billions.
According to the Ministry of Agriculture, the ten-year strategy is set to be relooked to give it the boost necessary for the realisation of the interests of stakeholders.
"Kenya is the third-largest milk producer after Ethiopia and Sudan with 5.2 billion litres annually and has the highest per capita consumption in Africa. Yet many challenges remain," said agriculture CAS Andrew Tuimur.
Dr Tuimur was speaking at the opening of the three-day African Dairy Conference organised in Nairobi by the Eastern and Southern Africa Dairy Association (ESADA) and other dairy stakeholders.
He said the Ministry would be keen on implementing the revamped strategy, which will see production capacity markedly improved through a host of initiatives which seek to create efficiencies in the value chain.
“These include the procurement and distribution of 350 milk coolers and the setting up of modern bull stations,” he said.
Dr Tuimur further said the state was focusing on improving the quality and safety of milk, improving breeding, as well as reducing greenhouse gas emissions from farming activities.
Livestock Principal Secretary Harry Kimtai said the dairy sector had enormous potential, which was yet to be fully harnessed.
“The global production of milk is increasing yet Africa contributes only 5.2 per cent to the total. This is insufficient considering that global demand is expected to grow by 2.5 per cent annually. Therefore we need to harness the potential of the dairy sector for the benefit of all Kenyans,” said Kimtai.
Kenya Dairy Board(KDB) Managing Director Margaret Kibogy said the regulator had also revised its strategy in line with global best practices and was set to achieve ambitious targets.
“This includes increasing production from the current 640 million litres to 1 billion litters of processed milk by 2022,” she said.
Kibogy further said the goal would be achieved through, among other initiatives, boosting processing capacity to desirable levels.
“The current installed capacity stands at 4.5 million litres annually even as the utilization rate is just at 44 per cent,” she said.
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