KENYA – Kenya’s Nairobi poultry farmers are raising urgent concerns about what they describe as unfair control over the City Market by powerful cartels.
Farmers say that monopolistic practices are squeezing their profits and jeopardising their livelihoods, calling on government authorities to step in and regulate the market.
Many farmers, especially those from Kiambu and Machakos counties, have seen their earnings fall drastically, a situation they blame on artificially low prices dictated by influential middlemen and wholesalers.
They claim these intermediaries set rates that barely cover production costs, forcing farmers to sell their chickens at significant financial loss.
With rising feed, veterinary, and maintenance costs, the struggle has reached a breaking point for many in the industry.
In response, nearly 200 farmers gathered at a recent Nairobi Poultry Farmers Association meeting to voice their frustrations and call for immediate government intervention.
Samuel Ndung’u, the association’s head, stressed the need for regulatory measures that would protect farmers from ongoing exploitation.
“Without proper laws, these cartels will keep draining our livelihoods,” he said.
The association has proposed a more transparent pricing system that considers actual production costs, along with legislation to curb monopolistic practices and promote fair competition.
The financial challenges facing poultry farmers have also been linked to declining chicken meat production in Kenya, which dropped from around 88,700 metric tons in 2019 to approximately 69,200 metric tons in 2020.
Production had previously peaked in 2018 at nearly 131,700 metric tons, but it has trended downward since then.
An upcoming trade deal between Kenya and the United States has added to local farmers’ concerns.
The proposed agreement would allow the import of finished poultry products from the U.S., which small-scale farmers argue could further destabilize the domestic poultry market and drive down local prices.
Experts suggest that establishing stronger cooperatives might help farmers secure better prices by reducing reliance on middlemen.
Additionally, improving access to financial management resources and sustainable farming education could enable farmers to adopt more resilient business practices, potentially helping them weather current financial pressures.
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