• Substandard animal feed being sold in the market due to shortage of maize
• Government yet to release two million bags of maize to millers from the National Cereals and Produce Board
Image: /FILE
Farmers are getting low quality animal feed because of the shortage of maize in the country.
Animal feed millers have urged the government to release the two million bags of maize it had promised.
John Gathogo, the publicity secretary at the Association of Kenya Feed Manufacturers, said the success of the livestock subsector is dependent on quality and affordable animal feed.
“However, in the recent days or perhaps months, there has been a shortage of raw materials. This has led to the presence of substandard feed in the market,” he said.
He said due to the shortage of the raw material, some feed manufacturers are operating below capacity.
Gathogo spoke on Friday during a media briefing at the Kenya School of Monetary Studies.
Last month, Noah Wekesa, the Strategic Food Reserve board chairman, said the two million bags will keep millers running until the end of August when harvesting in parts of the country starts.
But millers have yet to get the maize two weeks down the line. The release of the two million bags was meant to stabilise the prices of maize flour and animal feed.
Agriculture Principal Secretary Hamadi Boga on Friday told the Star that they are awaiting communication from the Cabinet.
“The SFR board will meet and guide on the next step. We will move with speed once we have formal communication on this,” he said.
Currently, a two-kilogramme packet of maize flour is selling at a high of Sh130, while a 70kg bag of animal feed is retailing at between Sh2,500 and Sh3,000.
A 90kg bag of maize is selling from Sh3,400 to a high of Sh3,800. In May this year, the government released two million bags to millers to cushion Kenyans from the high prices of unga.
Out of this, 1.7 million bags were meant for maize flour, while 300,000 bags were set aside for animal feed.
Manufacturers are procuring a 90kg bag of white maize for Sh3,600.
Millers have been getting maize from Tanzania, but by the end of the month, there will be some inflow of the produce coming into the market from this year’s long-rains harvest from Nyanza, Bungoma and Bomet counties.
Agriculture Principal Secretary Hamadi Boga on Friday told the Star that they are awaiting communication from the Cabinet.
“The SFR board will meet and guide on the next step. We will move with speed once we have formal communication on this,” he said.
Currently, a two kilo packet of maize flour is selling at a high of Sh130, while a 70kg bag of animal feed is retailing at between Sh2,500 to Sh3,000.
A 90kg bag of maize is selling at between Sh3,400 to a high of Sh3,800.
In May this year, the government released two million bags to millers to cushion Kenyans from the high prices of unga.
Out of this, 1.7 million bags were meant for milling maize flour while 300,000 bags were set aside to make animal feeds.
Manufacturers are procuring a 90kg bag of white maize for Sh3,600.
Millers have been getting maize from Tanzania but by the end of the month, there will be some inflows of the produce coming into the market from this year's long rains harvest from Nyanza, Bungoma and Bomet areas.