Brief news on farming and agribusiness developments from around the region

A worker spreads out rice to dry in Kisumu. A report commissioned by the Route to Food Initiative indicates that the government appears to have disregarded the intricate link between food and nutritional security and the health and well-being of the vast majority of Kenyans. FILE PHOTO | NMG

What you need to know:

  • The VAT on fuel exacerbates the situation by further stretching food and health budgets, particularly among vulnerable Kenyans, which makes it hard for them to afford and access adequate food to meet their basic dietary requirements.
  • According to the report, the introduction of the concessionary 8 per cent tax on petroleum products will see producers and suppliers pass the burden of the additional taxes on to consumers.
  • According to the livestock executive, Dr Joseph Kiyeng, each of the AI kits contains a three litre container, a thermometer, thermos flask, liquid nitrogen and straws.
  • Through mobile telephone, farmers are required to inform the officers whenever their cows are due for service, explained Dr Kiyeng.

New taxes may push consumers to food, health crisis — report

THE COUNTRY could be staring at a food and health crisis following the recent introduction of value added tax (VAT) on petroleum and agricultural products, a new report says.

The report commissioned by the Route to Food Initiative indicates that the government appears to have disregarded the intricate link between food and nutritional security and the health and well-being of the vast majority of Kenyans.

Layla Liebetrau, the Route to Initiative’s project lead said that there is already a nutrition quality gap that is occasioned by chronic and systemic hunger in the country.

“The VAT on fuel exacerbates the situation by further stretching food and health budgets, particularly among vulnerable Kenyans, which makes it hard for them to afford and access adequate food to meet their basic dietary requirements.”

The report estimates that food intake for low-income earners may decline by as much as 16 per cent — 20 per cent due to the taxes.

“Such grim statistics not only lower the quality of life of millions of Kenyans but also impairs the country’s noble goal of being food secure.”

According to the report, the introduction of the concessionary 8 per cent tax on petroleum products will see producers and suppliers pass the burden of the additional taxes on to consumers.

“VAT is almost always a regressive tax as the tax burden falls disproportionately on low-income earners,” said Alexander Owino, a financial sector specialist and author of the report.

Owino said the imposition of VAT, at any rate, however small, and irrespective of whether an enterprise falls under the exempt or zero-rated regime automatically translates into price increases for consumers.

“From a food security perspective, the situation is compounded by the reclassification of agrochemicals and pesticides from zero-rating to exempt. This measure will effectively increase the input costs to the farmer by as much as 50 per cent and may contribute towards making food more expensive by as much as three times,” he said.

The prohibitive costs of agrochemicals, however, he noted present an opportunity for the country to pursue alternative and sustainable farming and agricultural practices.

-Brian Okinda

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County distributes AI kits to boost milk output

LIVESTOCK FARMERS in Elgeyo Marakwet are set to benefit from better breeding services after the county distributed artificial insemination (AI) kits.

The kits were distributed to field officers across the 20 wards, to improve breeds and boost milk production.

The 30 kits were given to the county government by the national government’s livestock department with each costing between Sh50,000 and Sh70,000.

According to the livestock executive, Dr Joseph Kiyeng, each of the AI kits contains a three litre container, a thermometer, thermos flask, liquid nitrogen and straws.

“The milk productivity is still low, on average at four litres per day per cow and we want to increase this to over 15 litres in a day. We have issued the equipment to both our field officers together with private practitioners charged with the exercise across the county,” said Dr Kiyeng.

The officers will respond to farmers' needs as demanded by the producers.

"In fact, all the officers are professionals registered with the relevant veterinary regulatory body," Dr Kiyeng said, adding that every practitioner ought to have undertaken both animal health and AI training to be able to practice.

He said the success of the AI service largely depends on the effectiveness of coordination of both the farmer and the officers.

Through mobile telephone, farmers are required to inform the officers whenever their cows are due for service, explained Dr Kiyeng.

Governor Alex Tolgos inspected the equipment outside his office in Iten on Wednesday together with his deputy Wisely Rotich and the county official

The governor said his government had over the years subsidised AI services to as low as Sh500 for sexed-semen and Sh200 for conventional semen.

-Stanley Kimuge