Government Cracks Down on Raw Milk Sales Over Health Risks

The Cabinet Secretary for Agriculture and Livestock Development, Mutahi Kagwe, has announced a major crackdown on milk hawking, declaring the unregulated sale of raw milk a dangerous public health threat to millions of Kenyans. The announcement came during the flagging off of a Ksh1.43 billion flagship at Uhuru Park in Nairobi on May 20, to support dairy farmers across the country. CS Kagwe warned against brokers and hawkers selling raw milk directly to consumers, pointing out that the practice poses a serious and growing risk to the health of Kenyan families. “Raw milk sales must stop. It is dangerous, it is a health issue, and it destroys the ability to create value-added dairy products,” said CS Kagwe. He warned that millions of families, especially young children, are consuming milk that cannot be traced, tested, or guaranteed safe, exposing them to diseases and contamination daily. CS Kagwe urged parents to take personal responsibility, saying that if they have young children, feeding them quality and traceable milk was the only sure way to avoid serious health problems such as diarrhoea. He further accused milk weakening dairy cooperatives, and denying farmers better earnings from processed dairy products such as yoghurt, cheese, and milk powder that have costly market prices. Under the new reforms, processors and cooperatives will be required to strengthen traceability systems, identifying farmers, tracking their production levels, and verifying the source of every litre reaching the market. The government is distributing 230 milk coolers countrywide under the Ksh1.43 billion programme, with 95 units already deployed and the remaining coolers set to reach dairy cooperatives across the country in phases, intended to counter the scourge of cartels in the industry. “Many brokers are selling milk directly to consumers. Milk coolers will help organise farmers and reduce hawking,” stated Kagwe. With the new directive, milk production standards and ensure the country grows beyond being the continent’s largest milk producer into a global dairy powerhouse capable of exporting milk powder while protecting farmers from seasonal price crashes. To lower production costs, the Kagwe affirmed that the government is encouraging local cultivation of yellow maize and soya beans for animal feed through supported leasing programmes while also subsidising sexed semen to accelerate dairy cow genetics improvements at the farm level. The CS also confirmed that the cost of sexed semen has been cut from Ksh9,000 to Ksh1,000 through the government subsidy, with the hope of creating thousands of jobs also expected across milk cooling, transport, veterinary services, and dairy processing sectors nationwide.