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Milk deliveries to processors fall 5.8% in the dry spell
Processors are paying farmers Sh55 to Sh60 a litre as supply drops, the Agriculture CS says. Kenya will also import most of its maize from Tanzania.
Dairy5.8%
less milk reaching processors, the Agriculture Cabinet Secretary says
Milk arriving at processors has dropped 5.8%, Agriculture Cabinet Secretary Mutahi Kagwe said on 6 October. He put it down to a long dry spell that has cut fodder, and to panic buying, and ruled out foot-and-mouth disease as the cause.
Processors and private buyers are offering farmers Sh55 to Sh60 a litre, he said, against an average cost of producing a litre of Sh24.50 on open grazing and Sh39.50 on zero-grazing. He expects supply to recover once the rains bring back pasture.
Maize from Tanzania
The CS also said Kenya will import 25 million 90kg bags of maize, in steady flows through the year rather than all at once, mostly from Tanzania. The National Cereals and Produce Board raised its buying price to Ksh 4,000 a bag from Ksh 3,800, but secured fewer than a million bags locally.
Why it matters
- Dairy processors are competing for less milk at higher farm prices, which reaches the price of milk, yoghurt and cheese.
- Feed millers and others who use maize as a raw material face a market leaning on imports.
- The CS ties the recovery to the October to December rains, which the Central Bank also expects to be above average.
Sources
- Pulse - CS Kagwe explains prolonged milk shortage · 6 October 2026
- Citizen Digital - Kenya will import most maize from Tanzania · 6 October 2026
- Central Bank of Kenya - Monetary Policy Committee press release · 7 October 2026
