In 2023, the country recorded a 49 per cent increase in the value of dairy exports to a record US$56 million (Sh7.3 billion) from US$38 million (Sh4.9 billion) in 2022. In an interview with the Star, Kenya Dairy Board (KDB) Managing Director and CEO Margaret Kibogy said the country was targeting the Middle East for its exports with Dubai as its hub, while continuing to strengthen existing markets which include Tanzania, Uganda, South Sudan, China and Somalia. The government has put in place measures to increase annual milk production to around 11 billion litres by 2027. The government has put in place measures to increase annual milk production to around 11 billion litres by 2027. In addition to supporting livelihoods, the sector contributes critically to food security and nutrition, with milk providing over 7.3% of cereal supply and ranking fourth after cereals, pulses, sugar and sweeteners.
To increase production and increase supply to processors, KDB is working with industry players and farmers to improve production from smallholder to large-scale farmers. The Kenya Dairy Sustainability Roadmap 2023-2032 proposes to increase production through accelerated marketing, according to the Kenya Dairy Board. The country has a daily processing capacity of five million litres and has several processing units such as the milk processing unit in Nyeri County which has a processing capacity of 1,000 litres of milk per hour.
“The country would then become a net exporter of milk, with exports reaching 586 million by 2033,” said Margaret Kibogy. President William Ruto’s Bottom-up Economic Transformation (BETA) plan for 2022-2027 has identified dairy in the agricultural sector as one of the key value chains for transformation, given its huge potential to impact the socio-economic well-being of the country and millions of smallholder farmers. According to Statista, the milk market is expected to grow annually by 7.66% (CAGR 2024-2029) and most of the revenue from the sector is generated in India, worth USD 71 billion in 2024 (Sh10.2 trillion).
The government, through the KDB and other stakeholders, has put in place interventions to support farmers in fodder production, which includes large-scale production for economies of scale. The farmer-centric interventions are expected to increase productivity and milk production while improving the profitability, resilience and sustainability of dairy farming. “This will have an impact on other upstream activities, with more milk available for processing, valorization and marketing,” adds Margaret Kibogy.
Meanwhile, the government is collaborating with various entities on the Safe Milk Kenya campaign to ensure consumer protection and awareness. These are (U.S. Agency for International Development, (USAid), Feed the Future and Bio Foods, the premium dairy processor known for its high quality standards. All milk processors and the Kenya Dairy Board have laboratories to ensure quality. The aim is to create awareness among the public on milk quality, safety and compliance with the support of USAid.
The current national milk consumption is 120 litres per person per year, making Kenya the leader in Africa. However, there is room for growth, Kibogy said, adding that increased milk consumption will benefit the sector, allowing for more value-added products.
About 85% of milk is sold in liquid form, with the rest used for products such as cheese, yoghurt and ice cream. This is due to the increase in value addition (butter, ghee and cheese), which increased from 835.2 tonnes in 2022 to 1 072 tonnes in 2023.
The government also wants to set up a national breed improvement programme in collaboration with counties, to modernise dairy and beef breeds. In June 2024, Kenyan President William Ruto ordered that the cost of sexed semen be reduced from Sh8,000 to less than Sh3,000, to enable dairy farmers to increase their milk production and productivity.
