Feed millers have said the lifting of the GMO ban will allow the importation of soya bean meal and yellow maize, from GMO and non-GMO sources.
Martin Kinoti, Association for Kenya Feed Manufactures secretary general said the ban had crippled the country’s ability to respond to food and feed crises.
He said the ban on GMOs limited the sources of feed raw materials with serious consequences, mainly unavailability and high cost.
“This led to the loss of jobs and livelihoods due to the closure/scale down of livestock farms and the collapse of about 40 milling industries in the last two years.
“Due to the ban, AKEFEMA members could not access soya beans from the open market, such as the countries that grow GMO products such as Brazil, Argentina and the USA (a key source of feed proteins).”
He said with the lifting of the ban on GMOs, Kenya is now able to source key ingredients from outside our southern neighbours, mainly Zambia, Tanzania, Malawi and Uganda.
Kinoti spoke on Wednesday during a press briefing to articulate how the lifting of the ban on genetically modified organisms will affect the animal feed industry.
He said with the deployment of Agricultural Biotechnology, Kenya can now viably produce soya beans to serve this local industry.
Currently, a 70kg bag of dairy meal is selling at Sh2,500, layers at Sh3,500, and broiler Starter mash at Sh4,750 while pig feed is averaging at Sh2,550 per 70kg bag.
He said this is due to the upward changes in prices of feeds, which is directly attributed to the shortage, high cost and unavailability of raw materials making the livestock sector uncompetitive.
According to a 2018 study by ILRI, eggs, milk and meat are widely consumed in households as a major source of protein and account for nearly 40 per cent of the food budget.
“Therefore, any change in the supply chain in the production and processing of the above, to which animal feeds play a critical factor, threatens the food security and nutrition pillar of the national government agenda,” Kinoti said.
Margaret Karembu, Open Forum for Agricultural Biotechnology chairperson said, overwhelming scientific evidence shows that GMOs approved by close to 70 governments around the world are safe for human and animal consumption.
“The country also has a fully functional robust policy, legal and institutional framework for governing the use of GMOs,” she said.
She said GMOs have been grown since 1996 so it is no longer a new technology.
By 2019, 17 million farmers from 29 countries grew 191 million hectares (47.2 acres) of GM crops and 19 of these countries were developing countries.
Karembu said currently South Africa, Nigeria, Ethiopia, Sudan, Malawi, Eswatini and Ghana are cultivating 2.7 million hectares (6.67 acres) of GM crops.
Brazil cultivates 53 million hectares (130.97 acres), India 12 million hectares (29.7 acres), Canada 12 million hectares (29.7 acres) and China 3.2 million hectares (7.90 acres).
“The European Union, with its highly competitive livestock sector is 70 per cent import-dependent on high-protein crops. Most of which are GMOs imported from countries with 90 per cent adoption of soybean and maize,” she said.
Karembu called for stakeholders to share the available information on the use, propagation and consumption of GMOs.
“This is in addition to reviewing the role, use and farming of GMO materials for the exclusive use in the animal feed manufacturing sector,” she said.
Edited by Kiilu Damaris
