Jimson Kambale is a seasoned dairy farmer from Werugha, Voi, Taita Taveta County.
He had always wanted to pursue a career in dairy farming, but he lacked the necessary funds.
While still employed, Kambale began saving for the project and utilized his Ksh 22,000 funds to purchase his first dairy cow.
He eventually expanded to five cows and even competed in the Mombasa Agricultural Show, where one of his cows won first place overall.
“I now have five, and they provide plenty of milk. I sell milk and produce biogas for lighting and cooking,” he explained.
Following the agricultural fair, more farmers began flocking to his farm to learn about dairy farming.
This was a success for Kambale, who charges a nominal fee for training sessions.
“I train other farmers on all areas of dairy keeping from feeding to breeding and feed making, preservation and storage,” he said.
Kambale learned the expertise he is now passing on to others after attending a Kenya Promotion Marketing Company (KPMC) course.
As of 2019, his top producing cow produced at least 42 liters of milk per day, which he sells in Voi town for Ksh 50 to Ksh 60 per litre, depending on the season.
Milk from his farm brings him Ksh 2,800 per day, translating to about Ksh 84,000 per month.
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Kambale also has a store on his property, where he stocks bales of hay that he buys at a discounted price and resells to other farmers.
He also cultivates his own napier grass.
“I chop my fodder with a chaff cutter and feed the animals twice a day, right after the morning milking session and around 2 PM. I milk the cows twice a day,” he explained.
He also got into chicken farming to bolster his dairy project. The chicken produces at least six trays of eggs each day, earning him at least Ksh 100,000 every month.
Kambale works with skilled livestock officers to vaccinate his animals and increase milk yields, and he uses quality sperm to strengthen his breeds.
He recommended farmers to be familiar with their cattle and understand their behavior in order to take early action before it was too late.
“Whenever you notice your animal has lost appetite, has become inactive, lost weight and has a rough coat or has started isolating itself, there must be a problem and you need to take action immediately,” he added.
Dairy farming in Kenya Dairy cattle in Kenya include a mix of indigenous and alien breeds, as well as hybrids between the two.
The production system, the farmer’s aptitude, experience, or knowledge, and environmental factors such as climate all influence the breed selection.
There are about five million dairy cattle, which produce an estimated four billion litres of milk each year.
Milk production is forecast to expand by roughly 150% by 2050, but consumption, which is now at 8 billion litres, is also likely to rise as the population grows.
