AGRICULTURE:  Farmers who sell milk to Brookside Dairy have a reason to smile after the company announced it would start buying a litre of raw milk at Sh36 beginning April 1 up from the current Sh35.

The firm says the move is meant to cushion farmers from the adverse effects of the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic.

Last month, the Ruiru-based milk processor, which controls about 40 per cent of Kenya’s raw milk market, increased its buying price by Sh7 to Sh35 per litre to maintain an edge over competition. 

Prior to the increment, the company used to buy milk at Sh28 per litre.

The increase was in response to an earlier directive by President Uhuru Kenyatta where he ordered Treasury to release Sh500 million to New KCC to enable them buy milk from farmers at the improved price of Sh33 per litre.

“As the country implements far-reaching measures to contain the coronavirus and its threats on the economy, and especially agriculture, we decided to increase farm-gate prices of milk.

That will not only boost the dairy farming businesses but also help minimise the negative financial impacts of pandemic, which is also affecting the dairy farming community,” Brookside director of milk procurement and manufacturing John Gethi said in a statement.

“The new prices are also an incentive to our farmers to invest in climate-smart dairy practices,” he added.