{"id":117374,"date":"2025-06-30T15:03:27","date_gmt":"2025-06-30T15:03:27","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/chezaspin.com\/blog\/index.php\/2025\/06\/30\/dairy-farmers-in-western-kenya-decry-challenges-accessing-ai\/"},"modified":"2025-06-30T15:03:27","modified_gmt":"2025-06-30T15:03:27","slug":"dairy-farmers-in-western-kenya-decry-challenges-accessing-ai","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/chezaspin.com\/blog\/dairy-farmers-in-western-kenya-decry-challenges-accessing-ai\/","title":{"rendered":"Dairy farmers in Western Kenya decry challenges accessing AI"},"content":{"rendered":"

KISUMU, Kenya, Jun 30 \u2014 Dairy farmers in Western Kenya have decried difficulties in accessing Artificial Insemination (AI) services for their animals, hindering efforts to boost milk production in the region.<\/strong><\/p>\n

Suzan Ouma, who manages Moo and More Dairy Farm in Butula, Busia County, says farmers rely on private extension service providers, who sometimes deliver the wrong semen or use expired samples on their dairy cows.<\/p>\n

\u201cThat is the major challenge we have here in this region. Sometimes, the provider can inject your dairy animal with expired semen\u2014even after you\u2019ve paid,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

Ouma added that she has often been forced to blacklist certain service providers due to poor services that put her animals at risk.<\/p>\n

She noted that the high number of repeat inseminations is costly to farmers and can only be addressed if the government provides readily available and trusted extension officers.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere are no storage facilities for the semen, and the cost\u2014at Sh3,500\u2014is expensive for farmers, especially in cases where repeat procedures are needed,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

Her call to the county and national governments is to establish AI centres in the region to make services affordable and contribute to national agricultural growth.<\/p>\n

Speaking at her farm during a community field day on dairy farming, Ouma said she is willing to offer her farm as a model centre to help other farmers access AI services at subsidized rates.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt is our wish that the government steps in to end the malpractices in the AI field, which have led to widespread distrust among farmers,\u201d she added.<\/p>\n

Her concerns were echoed by several young farmers who gathered at her farm for an all-day training session conducted by experts from across the country.<\/p>\n

Youth-led agriculture <\/h2>\n

Peter Bwire, a dairy farmer with 17 cows, urged the government to address the sector\u2019s challenges, especially as more youth take up agriculture.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019ve visited Moo and More Dairy Farm, and I\u2019m learning a lot that will help improve my own farm,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

Bwire said six of his cows currently produce between 10 to 20 litres of milk each per day. However, he emphasized the need to enhance AI services and ensure the availability of quality semen.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou call the inseminators, but sometimes they\u2019re not available, or the semen you need isn\u2019t in stock. Meanwhile, your cow is on heat, and the delay becomes a big loss,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

He also highlighted the menace of ticks and tsetse flies in the region, noting that these pests often lead to the sudden death of dairy animals and must be addressed by the government.<\/p>\n

Area MP Joseph Oyula echoed these concerns, saying many farmers are abandoning dairy farming due to the challenges.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe county government should spray surrounding forests to help keep farmers\u2019 livestock safe from tsetse flies,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

Oyula noted the region has great potential in dairy farming, but both levels of government must act swiftly to tackle the emerging obstacles.<\/p>\n

\u201cMilk production can increase significantly if the farmers are supported. They are ready and willing to scale up production,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

He praised the high turnout of locals during the field day at Ouma\u2019s farm, calling it a positive step toward agricultural empowerment.<\/p>\n

Ouma reiterated her willingness to partner with the Busia County Government to use her farm as a demonstration site for other farmers.<\/p>\n

Fodder conservation <\/h2>\n

The three-year-old farm now has 30 dairy animals, including 20 milking cows producing 400 litres of milk daily.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe process half of the milk to make yoghurt and maziwa mala; the rest we sell to the community,\u201d said Ouma.<\/p>\n

She also said the farm practices climate-smart agriculture by using cow dung to generate electricity through a biogas system.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe are trying to reduce electricity costs, which are very high, while also being environmentally conscious,\u201d she noted.<\/p>\n

Experts at the event focused on fodder conservation, identifying it as one of the key challenges for dairy farmers in the region.<\/p>\n

Farmers often feed their animals crop residues left after harvesting.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere is no way you will increase milk production if you continue feeding your cows on maize and groundnut leftovers. They get no nutrients,\u201d said Ouma.<\/p>\n

Paul Mambo, a dairy consultant, trained farmers on silage-making, noting that fodder accounts for about 70 per cent of dairy farming costs.<\/p>\n

\u201cIf the government can supply farmers with hybrid crops like maize and sorghum, they will be able to make quality silage,\u201d he said.<\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

KISUMU, Kenya, Jun 30 \u2014 Dairy farmers in Western Kenya have decried difficulties in accessing Artificial Insemination (AI) services for their animals, hindering efforts to boost milk production in the region. Suzan Ouma, who manages Moo and More Dairy Farm in Butula, Busia County, says farmers rely on private extension service providers, who sometimes deliver […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":0,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-117374","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized","entry"],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack-related-posts":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/chezaspin.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/117374","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/chezaspin.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/chezaspin.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chezaspin.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=117374"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/chezaspin.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/117374\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/chezaspin.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=117374"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chezaspin.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=117374"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chezaspin.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=117374"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}