Kilifi County constructing additional milk cooling plants

Kilifi County has embarked on construction of additional milk cooling plants from the current six to encourage value addition.

Since distribution of dairy cows five years ago, the county has registered increased milk production to 25 million litres annually.

The county further targets to distribute 360 dairy cows this year.

Kilifi County Executive Committee Member for Agriculture Fredrick Kaingu, milk cooling plants are currently being installed in seven constituencies to help farmers store their produce.

This is expected to help farmers process their milk to make products such as yogurt to meet local demand.

The county government has been distributing Ayrshire, jersey and freshian dairy cattle to groups for the last four years to add to the current 53,000 population.

Kaingu says with issuance of the 60 dairy breeds to farmers Monday, 300 more will be distributed to farmer groups this year having distributed 171 dairy cattle last year.

Kilifi County currently building milk collection centres in the entire county for easy access by farmers. Farmers are however grappling with disease infection on their livestock whose vaccination has since begun.

Dorcas Ngowa from Sabaki from Upendo Group who got the dairy cow last April is among beneficiary whose income has improved as a result of the programme.

The county currently has six milk cooling plants.