A consumer group has raised concerns that the coronavirus could be spread by people working in the production of raw milk within the dairy value chain.
Voice for Change Project said riders, the main mode of transport of raw milk from the farms to the bulking and chilling plants, interact with more than 200 farmers daily.
John Wakirira from Laikipia Dairy Platform and Idah Kinya from Consumer Unity and Trust Society said the riders also run errands for farmers.
The errands include ferrying dairy meal, fertilisers or other farming inputs. All the activities put them at more risk of exposure to the coronavirus.
“Some of them even hawk milk directly to consumers in trading centres or traders in milk bars,” Wakirira said.
The lobbies want government agencies to give guidelines to prevent the spread of Covid-19 in the county through the dairy value chain.
Director of Public Health Dr Francis Kuria admitted that there is a danger in the food chain for the Covid-19 spread.
Kuria said that the virus could also spread faster at places like the Kiamaiko slaughterhouse.
“They have to maintain hygiene, wash their hands and cover their mouths and their nose with a mask when handling food,” he said.
The lobby said the riders need to be sensitised, tested and trained on how to protect themselves and their clients.
The organisation worried that most people in dairy production are elderly farmers with an average age of 60 years and could be at more risk.
“Their body immunity is low. Some have diseases like diabetes, high blood pressure, and other diseases associated with old age,” they said.
