Dairy farmers in Kirinyaga County have received a major boost following the county government’s effort to expand distribution of milk cooling facilities to the grassroots.

The empowerment initiative is now reaching the smaller producer organisations, thus reducing transport expenses.

Through the provision of milk coolers, backup power generators, cooperatives and producer organisations, losses have been reduced and more farmers have ventured into the dairy sector.

Speaking during the distribution of the latest batch of coolers, Kirinyaga Governor Anne Waiguru said the interventions are part of the county government’s commitment to accelerating economic empowerment by investing in projects directly identified and prioritised by residents through public participation.

She noted that the milk coolers will help in reducing post-harvest losses, improve milk quality and enhance farmers’ earnings by enabling better storage and access to formal markets.

For the earlier beneficiaries like the New Ngariama Farmers’ Cooperative Society, the impact is already evident, with the number of farmers supplying milk rising from about 400 to over 600, while daily milk collection has increased from 2,000 litres to more than 7,000 litres.

This growth follows the installation of a modern 10,000-litre milk cooler and a 100 KVA generator by the county government.

The cooperative chairperson, Phineas Ngari, said the facilities had boosted both production and farmer confidence while protecting milk from losses caused by inadequate storage and power interruptions.

“We were provided with a modern and efficient milk cooler that safely stores our farmers’ milk and a generator which ensures that even during power outages, we do not experience losses,” Ngari said.

He said, adding to its previous capacity, the cooperative can now store up to 12,500 litres of milk, enabling it to expand its operations and attract farmers from outside Ngariama.

The expansion has also created employment, with the cooperative increasing its milk collectors from four to 10.

Ngari said the cooperative was targeting 1,500 farmers within the next two years, supported by continued technical assistance from the county government’s Department of Agriculture.

Kirinyaga Dairy Cooperative Chairman, Kennedy Ngigi, said the intervention had similarly transformed operations after the cooperative struggled with inadequate storage capacity, revealing that the cooperative previously relied on a 3,500-litre cooler, which was insufficient to serve its growing membership.

“We took our request to the Governor, and she heard and responded. We were given a cooler with a capacity of 9,000 litres and a solar system. We were paying a bill of between Sh80,000 and Sh100,000, but now we pay slightly less than Sh10,000,” Ngigi said.

Ngigi said the increased storage capacity had also reduced pressure on farmers, allowing milk to remain safely stored for three to five days before collection.

So far, 29 milk coolers have been distributed to various cooperatives and groups both by the county government and through collaboration with the national government, increasing milk cooling capacity to over 70,000 litres.

By Mutai Kipng’etich