Cold spell to push up milk prices as production drops

Corporate News

A farmer milks cows. Farm gate prices of milk are expected to go up. File 

By Gerald Andae

In Summary

• Processors across the board are registering reduced milk volumes from producers.

The farm gate price of milk will go up in the coming months as the chilly weather that is being experienced in production zones cuts supplies.

Processors across the board are registering reduced milk volumes from producers, in a move that is already putting pressure on consumers who are now paying Sh2 more a packet across all brands.


 

“We are already feeling the impact of the cold weather which has seen milk production at the farm levels falling. We fear the trend might continue until the end of the chilly season,” said Kenya Dairy Processors Association chairperson Kipkirui Langat.

Dr Langat, who is also the managing director of the New KCC, added that starting next month, there would be new farm gate prices as a result of the declining production.

“We expect new producer prices in the coming month though we do not have the new figure at the moment that farmers will be paid as this will depend on specific processors,” he said.

He allayed fears of a sharp increase in milk prices, saying that processors have been holding huge volumes of long life products such as UHT and powder milk. This comes at a time when the country has been experiencing a milk glut that saw the price of milk in retail shops drop by Sh5 to Sh10 in the last three months.

Increased production also resulted in the drop of producers’ price from Sh40 last year to Sh30, before Brookside Dairies raised their price to Sh35 last month. Dr Langat said that on average, processors are paying Sh32 to the farmers currently.

Brookside has an installed capacity of 1.15 million litres, making it the largest processor in the market. The New KCC has a capacity of over 500,000 litres.