Kenyans take to social media, protest against rising food prices

Angry Kenyans have taken to social media to complain about the high cost of living occasioned by rising food prices.

Using the hashtag #lowerfoodprices, Kenyans have hit out at the government for failing to curb the ever-rising prices of basic commodities.

They have asked those concerned to intervene and reduce the food prices.

This comes against a backdrop of rising prices of cooking oil, sugar, and maize flour.

According to the latest data from the Kenya National Bureau of Statistics (KNBS) food prices rose by 8.89 percent in January making it hard for thousands of Kenyans to put food on the table.

A two-kilogram packet of maize is now retailing at Sh120 while a kilo of sugar goes at Sh140 across major supermarkets in the country. Cooking gas, cooking oil and bread have also risen by a significant margin.

Here are some of the comments from the netizens;

How Cooking oil is 3 times expensive than Super Petrol is what I don't understand. And the President is here preparing for Sagan 3, is political meeting important than the lives of Kenyans?
Akili Kichwani...

#lowerfoodprices — Atieno Nyar Asego (@nyar_asego) February 20, 2022

I don't care who occupies state House this year. I am concerned that 1,000 shillings can't buy basic things for my family to last two days #lowerfoodprices — lillian kawira (@prudentlilly) February 20, 2022

What can you do with Kes 1,000 in Kenya:

-10 packets (500ml) of milk
-half a little of cooking oil

That’s 2 days for a family of 5. It’s a runway inflation. It’s the new tax#lowerfoodprices — Tim Kipchumba (@TimKipchumba) February 20, 2022

Let's start from the basics, in order to #lowerfoodprices we need to #lowerfarminputprices first, otherwise it would not be practically possible. pic.twitter.com/H8D1HhgKkH — Collins Ngetich???????? (@CollinsNgetich) February 20, 2022

Something must be done.#lowerfoodprices pic.twitter.com/7eX7ipAcg5 — Esther Mwaniki (@esther_masha) February 20, 2022

Beef is at 500 per kg,from 180 .????????????????what has changed with the cattle that are being slaughtered,are they smart,jabbed or fed on artificial intelligence?u are even selling cholesterol at exhorbitant prices.since olive oil is a preserve of a few.#lowerfoodprices ???? — Magdaline Muranda (@murandamag) February 20, 2022

We should conduct a nation wide strike, twitter trend isn't enough. we can't be buying 1kg of cooking oil at ksh290 and Sugar at ksh250 bana. Kenya isn't a country.

There is no equality in this country. The poor are starving ????

#lowerfoodprices Nakumatt Stanley Livondo — Ja Loka (@fels3_) February 20, 2022