Kisumu milk production is below demand, says board

Only 37 per cent of milk consumed in Kisumu is produced locally, the Kenya Dairy Board (KDB) has said.

KDB Kisumu branch Regional Manager Tom Owino 63 per cent of the milk consumed in the county is imported from neighbouring counties.

He said the county consumes more than 70 million litres of milk yet local farmers only produce 26 million litres.

Flagging off a roadshow in which the board has partnered with Radio Maisha and the county government, Owino said the high milk demand prompted the campaign advocating for consumption of quality and safe milk.

He said consumption of unpasteurised milk may lead to disease outbreak in the area. 

"We urge residents to only buy pasteurised milk from certified sources. These are only found in license milk shops and packaged milk," Owino said.

He added: "We want to educate the public on how to properly identify licensed places. We need a healthy population. Milk ATMs have been inspected and gone through processes of licensing hence meet the stipulated quality."

Due to milk deficit in the county, the county government plans to provide needy farmers with 82 exotic dairy breeds and 70 dairy goats to boost the milk production.

The county Agriculture, Livestock and Fisheries Chief Officer Ben Angir announced the upgrading and importing of high quality dairy animals. He said the county distributed 81 dairy cows last year.

"We must look at the market and the market will provide clean and quality milk that is safe for our population. If the market is stable then the production will be stimulated. The farmers will get income and that will boost the standard of living of our people," he said.