Emurua-Dikir MP loses 24 Friesian cows to poisonous animal feed

Emurua-Dikir MP Johanna Ngeno is counting losses after his herd of 24 Holstein Friesian cattle worth Sh2.5 million died after feeding on a poisonous imported mineral product. 

According to Olekisiara farm manager Fredrick Mutai, the pedigree cattle started dropping dead one after another, minutes after feeding on the product (name withheld because the Standard Digital could not independently verify whether the product was responsible for the death of the animals).

However, the product is imported from Ireland is available at local animal feeds stores.

"The cows began shivering, foaming in the mouth and running wild before dropping dead one after the other five minutes after minerals salt," he said.

Mutai added, "We immediately called a veterinary doctor who came and injected the animals in an efforts to save them, but there was little he could do,"

Information printed on the 20kg bags of the product manufactured by a foreign company, states that the product is complementary feeding stuff for ruminants. It encapsulates feed urea.

The batch of tens of bags bought by Ngeno has an expiry date of January 28, 2022.

Luke Evans another worker at the farm own by the MP, said since it was the first time for them to use the product, they consulted the supplier based in Nakuru before using it.

"We followed keenly the instructions given by the product supplier. He told us the ration for each cow is 200 grammes per day mixed with other general animals feeds. That is what exactly what we did," he said.

Mutai said they are convinced the product is to blame for the heifers’ deaths since the cattle which did not feed on the minerals are not affected.

"There is no doubt that the product is to blame for the death of the cows," he said.

The lawmaker has challenged the Kenya Bureau of Standard (Kebs) to be keen on all the cattle feeds imports to shield farmers from incurring huge losses like himself.

"It's very devastating for a farmer to lose even a single cow due to the failure by Kenya Bureau of Standards to block the importation of poisonous cattle feeds and other products," he said.