The Murang’a county administration is set to establish a Sh150 million animal feeds plant to reduce the cost of production for dairy farmers.
Water, trade and co-operatives county executive Paul Macharia said the plant will complement the milk processing firm the government completed earlier this year.
Macharia said many farmers have been complaining about the high cost of feeds that make dairy farming almost unsustainable.
Many farmers source their feeds from the neighbouring Kiambu county but they cost too much by the time they are transported to Murang’a.
The executive said the feeds plant is being constructed on labour-based terms and is set to be completed by the end of the year. It is being constructed next to the milk plant in Maragua.
“Once complete, it will sell animal feeds at a subsidised price as it will source its raw materials from local farmers,” he said.
The project is part of governor Mwangi wa Iria’s flagship projects on dairy farming since he was elected in 2013, Macharia said.
The CEC said the governor first consolidated farmers into 38 co-operatives and equipped each with a 5,000 litres milk cooler.
He then provided high-quality dairy cows to farmers through the co-operatives at a subsidised rate in order to increase milk production.
The milk plant was then established in 2015 and has the capacity to process 240,000 litres of milk per day.
Currently, it processes 100,000 litres of milk every-day, which is sold in Nairobi, Kiambu, Murang’a, Kirinya and Nyeri counties.
Macharia said that the county government has been testing the market to understand the dairy products most required by buyers.
He said that the dairy sector is set to become a serious income earner for Murang’a residents.
“We have seen people quit their jobs to fully engage in dairy farming and are making a lot of money out of it,” Macharia said.
Macharia appealed to more farmers to engage in dairy farming because the ready market and a guaranteed price are added advantages.
(edited by O. Owino)
