Meat prices hit new high as supply from abattoirs falls

A slaughterhouse in Nairobi. PHOTO | DENNIS ONSONGO 

By JAMES KARIUKI

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Summary

• A kilogramme of beef with bones retailed at Sh425 on average last month up from Sh400 in November last year — a record high.
• Dagoretti, Limuru and Kitengela abattoir dealers blamed scarcity of cattle for the high prices.

Meat prices have a hit a new high on reduced supply at slaughterhouses as households continue to enjoy cheap vegetables.

Kenya National Bureau of Statistics (KNBS) data shows a kilogramme of beef with bones retailed at Sh425 on average last month up from Sh400 in November last year — a record high.

Dagoretti, Limuru and Kitengela abattoir dealers blamed scarcity of cattle for the high prices.

Poor rains in major cattle-producing areas have led to livestock deaths following the drought that left about 2.7 million people in need of food aid.

The drought also saw farmers sell their cows at throwaway prices in a rush to mitigate the losses they would incur in the event of mass deaths.

READ: Meat prices hit record high on low cattle supply

KNBS data shows a kilogramme of cabbages dropped 42.9 per cent to Sh35.79 over the past year while that of potatoes dipped 35 per cent to Sh52.02 in the same period. A kilogramme of sukuma wiki was going for Sh39.39 last month, a drop from the Sh43.15 in November last year.

Many Kenyans struggle to put a decent meal on the table as food prices race ahead of wages, especially among the poor who spend a larger share of their income on food.