Wairugu comes to the rescue of dairy farmers
By The Mountain Journal Crew
Kirinyaga County
Government will spend Sh58 million to support dairy farmers in the county
during the current financial year.
go towards the purchase of milk processing equipment, power backup generators,
a milk tanker and supporting Artificial Insemination (AI) services.
Governor Anne
Waiguru has said that through a partnership of the County Government and the
National Agricultural and Rural Inclusive Growth Project (NARIGP) project, 62
dairy farmers groups have been supported with Ksh. 31 million for improvement
of dairy cattle breeds through artificial insemination and on-far m feed
formation and silage making. This project will impact about 1550 households.
Improving the
county’s cattle breeds, which will be done in collaboration with the Kenya
Animal Genetic Resources Center (KAGRC), will enhance milk production and ensure
that dairy cattle have a stronger immune system.
In the past three years, dairy farmers have been pressuring Wairugu to follow Murang’a County Government strategies on the sector.
“The ultimate
goal of this program is to ensure that farmers increase their milk production
and get more value from it so that they can uplift their living standards,” Said the governor.
She noted that
the county was aiming at increasing milk production from the current daily
average of 4 liters per farmer to about 13 litres which she said would be made
possible through improvement of the existing cattle breeds.
added that another Sh27.5 million will go into installation of semi-automated
yoghurt production units for Rung’eto and Kirima Dairy Farmers Cooperative
Societies, installation of a 150KV power backup generator and its housing for Podago
Dairy Farmers Cooperative Society and procurement of a10,000 litres milk hauler
for Rung’eto Dairy Farmers Cooperative Society.
yoghurt production equipment will have the capacity of processing about 500
liters daily which will go a long way in ensuring that farmers add value to
their milk for better returns. The power
generator will ensure seamless operations for the beneficiaries in the event of
electric power failure while the milk hauler will enhance efficiency in
transportation of milk.
Cooperative Society Manager, Beth Kariuki, has said that the support will go a
long way in enhancing productivity of the society. She said that once they get
the yoghurt production unit, they will be able to upscale their yoghurt
production to commercial levels. Currently the society has a manual yoghurt production
equipment which can only produce a maximum of 100 liters of yoghurt per day,
which is just enough for internal consumption.
that the equipment will enable them add value to their milk which will in turn
translate to better earnings for the farmers.
returns will act as an incentive to farmers and make them add more dairy cattle
to increase milk production for more income.” She said.
said that in the last three years, the county government has supported the
dairy sector through installation of milk cooling machines for the dairy
cooperative societies as well as offering the required technical extension
services to farmers.
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