Dairy farmers to earn more for high-quality milk, says CS Kagwe
By Benson Ltamely
Dairy farmers who produce high quality milk are poised to earn premium payments from their milk sales after Agriculture and Livestock Development Cabinet Secretary (CS), Mutahi Kagwe, announced a government initiative that will see dairy farmers paid based on the quality of milk they produce.
While speaking during the opening of the 17th Africa Dairy Conference and Exhibition (AFDA17) at the Kenyatta International Convention Centre (KICC) in Nairobi last week, CS Kagwe announced that soon the government will launch a Good Quality Milk Certification Programme that will set a benchmark for milk quality and safety.
“We must all produce good quality milk, and the farmer must be recognised for doing the right thing. It cannot be the same amount for bad and good. Those who produce better will earn better,” he said.
The CS further decried the use of aflatoxin-rich maize feeds by dairy farmers as detrimental to Kenya’s milk export ambitions noting that the presence of aflatoxins in Kenyan milk will lock out Kenya from international markets as a result of the high quality standards demanded by such markets.
“When we feed our cows with aflatoxin-rich maize, it follows then that we are going to have aflatoxin in our milk. That is hindering our export markets because there is a certain quality that the international market demands for us to be able to export our milk,” CS Kagwe warned.
He further urged animal feeds manufacturers and dairy farmers to adopt Aflasafe, a product that suppresses aflatoxin in maize that is scientifically proven, in order to produce quality milk for Kenyans and the export market.
In 2024, Kenya produced a total of 5.3 billion litres of milk and aspires to double it to 10 billion litres in the coming years, according to the Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock Development.
This, CS Kagwe argues, will be achieved through tackling aflatoxins, reducing the cost of animal feeds, improving cattle breeds and giving incentives to farmers in order to produce high quality milk.