The Kenya Dairy Board has issued a warning to traders against engaging in the trade of illegal powdered milk, which is capturing a significant portion of the local market and causing losses for farmers. The board emphasized that the government will not relent in its ongoing crackdown.
During an inspection tour of a local milk processing plant in Korakora division, Garissa, the Chairperson of the Kenya Dairy Board, Genesio Mugo, stated that currently, no permits have been issued for importing powdered milk into the country.
“I want to state clearly that there is no permit to import powdered milk into the country. This is because we want to create a market for our local milk from camels, cows, and goats. After all, the illegal milk is taking away our local milk market share,” Mugo said.
“We want Kenyans to consume our milk and not the ones from other countries. We have powdered milk from our local companies like the KCC and more investors are coming to set up powdering milk plants to fill in the gaps we may have,” he added.
Mugo emphasized that, with the recent rains, the country can produce enough milk for local consumption.
The Managing Director of the Board, Margaret Kibogy, stated that the Board is currently concentrating on non-traditional milk-producing counties like Garissa. Training sessions for farmers and other stakeholders have already been conducted to enhance knowledge in dairy farming.
“Milk consumption in this area is very high and we have decided to expand our ‘footprint’ here by setting up offices so that we can enhance our services and get closer to our stakeholders,” Kibogy said.
Regarding the illegal powdered milk, the Managing Director mentioned that they are collaborating with a multi-agency team to crackdown on illegal products, ensuring the protection of local farmers and consumers.
“We want to welcome all our traders and other stakeholders to be compliant with the regulations and laws so that we can protect our farmers and our consumers because we don’t even know how safe the illegal milk is for human consumption,” she said.
