According to the Kenya Dairy Board, Dairy farming is one of the largest subsectors in the agricultural industry, accounting for 14% of Kenya's agricultural GDP. Participants range from large-scale farmers with massive ranches and hundreds of thousands of animals to smallholder farmers with fewer cattle, but who make up the majority of dairy farmers. Though the industry has potential for returns, smallholder farmers face a number of challenges, which prevent them from reaching their production potential. Endless Africa Limited (EAL), an agribusiness company, is working towards providing solutions to some of these challenges, as highlighted below:

1. Poor yield

Most smallholder farmers have low productivity, with their cows yielding far less milk than they are capable of. This can be blamed on lack of access to quality feeds, low technological application, and poor knowledge of best practices.

To combat this, Endless Africa has invested in producing quality fodder and feeds, which are specially designed to increase both the quantity and quality of milk. One of the objectives of EAL is to increase dairy production per animal from 7 liters daily to 20 liters. EAL also works to increase production by applying technology, for instance, digitizing the milking process. The company also trains farmers on best practices so that they are able to optimize their production

2. Poor distribution of products

Smallholder dairy farmers also struggle with offloading their milk once they have gathered it. Since most of them are also unable to process it due to insufficient storage facilities, they end up having to dump what they are not able to sell. This leads to substantial losses.

As a solution, EAL provides a ready market for smallholder farmers' products. The organization has extensive distribution networks, which include home deliveries for clients, and supplying supermarkets and convenience stores. Additionally, EAL has the facilities to process raw milk thereby producing differentiated milk products and adding value. As a result, subsistence dairy farmers are able to sell all the milk they produce.

3. Low, unpredictable profits

Due to poor feed, low yield, and inability to offload dairy products, small-scale farmers have had to grapple with low profits. Additional challenges such as unpredictable weather conditions, which affect fodder production; the high cost of commercial feeds; poor infrastructure; and low investment in the industry also negatively impact the bottom line for farmers.

 As earlier mentioned, the production of affordable, high-quality feeds by EAL has improved dairy yields significantly, allowing farmers to earn more from the animals they already have. On top of this, EAL offtakes their raw milk and strives to pay farmers on time, allowing them the comfort of a regular income. The firm also provides farmer education, which allows them to improve their farms and maximize their earnings.

Conclusion of solutions to challenges faced by smallholder dairy farmers in Kenya

To summarize, small-scale dairy farmers in Kenya face a variety of challenges. However, Endless Africa Limited works to provide solutions to these issues and thus contributes to making dairy farming a sustainable, profitable pursuit. Investing in EAL helps to support the work the firm is doing, letting the investor make an impact on dairy farmers' lives while still earning a return.  

To find out how you can contribute to EAL's mission,  discuss production partnerships, or our different investment products, contact us by clicking here.