The planting season is one of the most expensive times for farmers in the cropping calendar. Farmers must dig deeper into their pockets for seeds and fertilizer. All this with the escalating cost of farm inputs, notwithstanding. Data from our wheat farmers register for example confirms an average wheat production rate of fifteen 90kg bags an acre. There is however the potential for farmers to…
By Mathews Ndanyi Agriculture officials in North Rift fear that cereal production will drop by a big margin after the government decided not to import subsidised fertiliser. The input is likely to go up by more than 200 per cent in the open market. The National Cereals and Produce Board has been selling the subsidised DAP fertiliser (for planting) at Sh1,200 per 50 kg bag.…
The World Health Organization (WHO) states that food security achieved “when all people, at all times have physical and economic access to adequate, sufficient, safe and nutritious food to meet their dietary needs and food preferences for an active and healthy life”. It is not just about physical availability of food. It is more about the accessibility of food in terms of its affordability in…
Barely two months to the onset of next planting season, there is no government subsidised fertilizer in sight. In what could lead to a food crisis in the country, most farmers in the North Rift, the country’s bread basket, are also yet to prepare their farms ahead of long rain season expected to begin in March. The farmers are still stuck with tonnes of maize currently…
Environmentalists are fighting to lock chemical manufacturers out of State’s lucrative fall army worm control plan after the Agriculture Ministry warned of the return of the dreaded pests. The environmentalists, alarmed that the millions of shillings spent on chemicals in the last season has not eradicated the pest, want the ministry to turn to ecological pest control measures. “We cannot afford to rely on solutions…
A stunning landscape of lush green looking farmlands stretching for miles past the forested hills and river networks, defines the landscape of Kilgoris. Kilgoris is a town in Trans Mara West Sub-county in Narok county. This town is home to fifty-five-year-old Chief Simion Koiseta an unsung hero in the village of Romosha. Simion Ole Koiseta or simply “chief” as most residents in his area call…
By Jaindi Kisero President Uhuru Kenyatta must have had good intentions when he recently announced that the government would buy maize from farmers at Sh 2,500 per bag. It was an improvement from the first offer that the government had announced of Sh2,000. Yet while the Sh2,500 per bag offer made for good politics, it was bad economics. I say so because as things stand,…
CGA is encouraging Famers in Siaya to venture into cultivation of sorghum as cash crop in order to improve their economic livelihoods. Speaking when he met Sorghum farmers and opinion leaders in Bondo Sub County, Siaya county Cereals Growers Association Field Extension Officer Mr Brian Etemesi told farmers to grow the improved variety of sorghum for better returns. Mr Etemesi said that through the Farm…
Wheat production in Kenya is expected to improve this year following good weather that boosted production across the breadbasket region. Cereal Growers Association (CGA) chief executive officer Anthony Kioko said production is expected to grow from 2.7 million bags last year to three million. The high production will reduce imports and check high cost of wheat flour in the country. Wheat price has been moving…
Cereal Growers Association (CGA) will now represent its farmer members in the maize task-force. This follows the appointment of CGA Chairman Stephanus Kruger into the task-force. This was through an official Gazette Notice number 11710 issued on 8th of November 2018. The task-force was put together by Agriculture CS Hon. Mwangi Kiunjuri. It has been charged with the mandate to review and make recommendations on…
