Kiambu poultry farmers form society to solve challenges choking the sector.
Poultry farmers in Kiambu County
have formed a co-operative society to help them solve the challenges that have
been stifling the poultry industry in the country and driving most of them into
bankruptcy.
While speaking during the launch
of Kiambu County Poultry Farmers Co-operative Society in Thika, founder member Zachary
Waweru Munyambo said that the society was formed to address the common
challenges they faced to enable them effectively compete in a market that was
currently flooded with cheap poultry products.
“We saw the need to come together
to enable us speak in one voice and collectively tackle our common challenges
such as the high cost of production and the unavailability of ready markets to
our products,” he explained.
Among the numerous challenges
they faced, the farmers cited the influx of poor quality poultry feeds in the
market that were sold at high prices. This they noted, affected the production
and quality of their eggs and meat thus making poultry farming an uneconomical
venture.
They also said that some of the
ingredients used by some of these manufacturers exposed their chicken to
diseases and other health complications.
“We also face a very big
challenge with the middlemen who buy our eggs at throw away prices due to our
vulnerability. The police and county government enforcement officers are
another very big hindrance to our growth as the subject us in all manner of
harassment in the guise of checking public health precautions,” explained Paul
Kamau, a poultry farmer from Juja sub-county.
The farmers also cried foul about
the poor services they received from the veterinary officers which at times
resulted to some of them losing their entire flock of birds.
Good News.
However, barely three months
after registering their association, these farmers have now started
manufacturing their own chicken feeds that is retailing at Sh. 2,500 per a 70kg
bag of layers mash, sh. 300 less than what the other manufacturing are selling.
They say that their feeds has
improved egg production by about 1.5% and they were hopeful that with time,
they will continue improving on quality and work out more cost effective
measures that will eventually scale down the cost of the feeds to the bare
minimum.
Thika Town MP Eng. Patrick
Wainaina however challenged them to think outside the box and begin their own
hatcheries, feeds manufacturing plants and slaughterhouses to enable them
effectively compete for the East African market.
He donated an incubator capable
of hatching 1,000 chicks and promised to give them a feeds mixer once they
started their own feeds manufacturing plant.
“Instead of lamenting about these
challenges you are facing, you should instead view them as opportunities that
call for exploitation. Don’t restrict yourselves to just poultry feeds
production. Think big. Start making all animal feeds. Hatch your own chicks and
even employ your own vets. This way you are guaranteed of quality and improved
sales,” Wainaina challenged the farmers.
He promised to help them in the
logistics necessary for the success of their business including availing funds
for growth and improvement.
His Gatundu North Counterpart
Wanjiku Kibe challenged the farmers to start thinking about value addition to
both the poultry meat and the eggs so as to beat the market.
“This is your chance to dictate
the market. Seize every business opportunity that is related to poultry farming
to kick out middlemen who are currently taking advantage of your vulnerability.
You can even start your own hotel to sell your value-added poultry products and
also contract some farmers to grow corn for your own raw materials so as to cut
production costs,” said Wanjiku.
She appealed to the Executive
through the Ministries of Agriculture and Trade to cancel all permits allowing
traders to import poultry produce from overseas.
“These are the people killing the
poultry industry with these cheap and at times substandard products,” she said.
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