This archive report was first published on 1 July 2020.
On July 1, 2020, the national government announced a Ksh 100 million investment in a potato cold storage facility in Ol Kalou, Nyandarua County.
The facility, which will have a capacity of 100,000 metric tonnes, is expected to reduce post-harvest losses and empower farmers to access credit for expansion.
Chief Administrative Secretary for Industrialization and Trade Lawrence Karanja noted that the project, which was promised by President Uhuru Kenyatta during his recent visit to the region, is twofold, consisting of a cold store and a processing plant.
Speaking during the handover of the site to the contractor, Jomaki Enterprises Limited, Karanja cautioned against delays, stating that all funds allocated for the project were available.
"The project will serve to meet the food security and manufacturing agendas," Karanja said. "The factory has the capacity to supply the county-funded factory for three months without a single potato being supplied."
Three other factories in Shamata, Wanjohi, and Engineer have also been earmarked for construction, while Kinangop and Mirangine Sub Counties have been proposed for similar cold storage facilities.
According to Governor Francis Kimemia, the joint venture between the national and county government will cost over Ksh 1 billion on a 50/50 basis.
"The farmers will receive receipts that will be used, under the commodity exchange programme, to access credit for expansion of their farming businesses," Kimemia said.
"The farmers are free to sell their stored produce to the county government or pay a small premium for the storage to sell elsewhere, offloading them of up to 40 percent in post-harvest loss, occasioned by bad weather and saturated markets," he added.
