This archive report was first published on 5 June 2020.
Kenyan farmers are facing an unexpected challenge in the form of an oversupply of poultry products, prompting them to call for a suspension of imports from East African countries.
According to the Federation of Kenya Poultry Farmers, the local market has been flooded with broilers since last month, following President Uhuru Kenyatta's call for farmers to increase production during the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020.
As of May 20, the inventory for dressed chicken frozen inventory stood at 71.86 million kilos, a data from the Kenya Poultry and Breeders Association (KPBA) revealed.
Monica Wanjiru, the President of Federation of Poultry Farmers, stated that Kenya has a surplus of 253 days in chicken inventory, meaning that the projected supply of poultry products will be good to last at least until the second half of 2021.
However, the COVID-19 crisis has severely aggravated the situation, with the closure of hotels, restaurants, and other institutional buyers, coupled with restrictions in the movement of goods and people.
“In order to preserve the remaining production potential for 2020, the importation of poultry meat and poultry products must cease as soon as possible so that the industry, especially those at the breeder stage of the value chain, can hold on until times are less volatile,” the lobby group said.
President Uhuru Kenyatta had urged farmers to increase production in April 2020, saying, “I encourage our traders and farmers in fresh produce to continue with their agricultural activities, so as to ensure the continued supply of the farm produce to our markets.”
