In April last year, Kurji Akbar accompanied his friend Antony Karuri to visit his ailing father at Magomano village in Wanjohi, Kipipiri.
On the way to and from Magomano, Akbar noticed many residents with milk cylinders and buckets spending hours by the roadside waiting for their milk to be collected by transporters.
This was a normal chore to many in Nyandarua county which is the second-largest milk producer in the country after Kiambu.
But Akbar noticed a big gap in the milk value chain, screaming for someone to fill it. He wondered why these hardworking farmers were suffering.
On Thursday, the Nyandarua dairy sector received a major boost after Sh1 billion milk processing plant, Ziara Dairy, roared to life in Magomano.
The factory was commissioned by Nyandarua Governor Francis Kimemia.
Ziara Dairy general manager James Kamau said after noticing the opportunity, Akbar visited Nyandarua governor and “found an enabling environment due to good investment policy in the county”.
The plant initially targets over 6,000 farmers drawn from Wanjohi, Miharati, Geta, Njireti, Manunga, among other areas in Kipipiri and areas surrounding Ol Kalou town.
Kamau said the factory can process 100,000 litres of milk daily and has started collecting from farmers in small quantities before rolling out full production.
“The management decided to invest in the sector due to the milk glut that has in the past hit the county. They also want to make sure that more farmers who have incurred heavy losses get value for their money. This is an area that has a lot of milk that has in the past gone to waste due to the lack of market and poor prices,” he said.
Kamau said the plant will produce fresh milk, yoghurt, ghee, butter, UHT mala, and finally cheese, all of which will be under brand name Lilly.
He said the factory is directly employing 300 residents and will also source all other required materials and services like transport locally.
“We also intend to start manufacturing animal feeds that we can be supplying to our suppliers and cheap prices,” he said.
Speaking at the ceremony, Governor Kimemia said the investment will put money in the pockets of farmers. He said Sh16 billion is generated from milk from Nyandarua annually.
Kimemia said the factory will get milk from 800 collection centres, where 20 dairy cooperatives have signed an MoU to supply milk to the new processor.
He said the competition among the many milk companies who buy the product from Nyandarua would hike the milk prices to the benefit of the farmers.
With the employment of the over 300 people from the region, he said, the economy of the area will be boosted.
“Our youths who have in the past been jobless will now have an income. The county government will always welcome investors to boost our income,” he said.
He said that his government was committed to improving the dairy sector as the county produces 30 per cent of the milk consumed in the country.
Last week, the county launched a Sh30 million vaccination of livestock in the area targeting over 385,000 animals.
“We encourage more private investors to take advantage of numerous opportunities and good environment in Nyandarua,” Kimemia said.
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