Dairy farmer Sidik Sumra keeps a total of 400 animals, 150 of which are mature dairy cows while six are bulls at his Sumra Dairy Farm situated at Kikambala – Amkeni in Kilifi County. The rest are in-calf heifers and calves.
“I buy breeding bulls from top farms across the country for servicing the cows. Occasionally I also do artificial insemination,” he says.
His animals are kept under the semi-zero grazing system, where they free-range from 5am to 10am before they are taken back in the sheds in readiness for milking at noon.
Before milking, the animals are fed on napier grass, cassava leaves and amaranth (mchicha) – all which he grows on 15 acres. During milking, Sumra said he feeds the cows on a mix of maize germ, wheat bran, sorghum bran and mineral salt.
“Currently I milk 145 dairy cows that produce between 1,200 and 1,500 litres every day. The cows produce between 10 and 33 litres each,” he said, attributing the low milk production of some animals to the 4km they walk to graze due to inadequate fodder and the warm weather at the Coast.
The dairy business, according to Sumra, was started by his great grandfather Sidik Sanjar in Mombasa in 1912.
“Then he used to do zero-grazing but we had to relocate the cows to Kibarani on the West of the island as Mombasa town was growing faster.”
Some 12 years ago, the family relocated the enterprise to the current location where they leased 200 acres.
He took over the management of the business from his father Anwerali Mohamed three years ago.
“The business is worth over Sh50 million. We have employed over 70 workers.”
He sells 80 per cent of their raw milk as high as Sh70 a litre to consumers in Mombasa and its environs, where they do home deliveries.
The other 20 per cent is processed into mala, yoghurt, cheese (panir) and mawo, a product made by stirring milk till it becomes solid. The products go at between Sh100 to Sh900 a piece.
“We sell them at our shop in Mombasa where there is big market,” said Sumra, who reckons that he has not done any other job apart from farming.
He sells in-calf heifers at Sh120,000, second and third lactation cows at Sh140,000 while breeding bulls are sold at between Sh25,000 and Sh120,000 depending on the age.
His day at the farm begins at 6am, ensuring that the animals are well-fed, the cows are milked on time as well orders from customers are met.
Some of the challenges he faces include expensive dairy feeds and difficulty in getting qualified workers.
Doing the business on a leased farm, he added, is an expensive undertaking, but he declined to reveal what he pays annually for the land.
“Sometimes diseases like East Coast Fever also attack the animals but we have a vet who is working to manage that.”
Theft of animals is also another challenge. “Two years ago, my two cows were stolen and slaughtered just near the farm,” he said, noting he has hired several watchmen to guard the farm at night. His plan is to acquire own land where he will transfer the animals and increase the herd.
