Inside Vihiga dairy farm with 8 dairy cows producing over 100 litres of milk daily

Dairy farming has undoubtedly created employment opportunities for many people who have never had a chance to earn from the white color jobs.

One such person is Margaret Ahona, a dairy farmer from Emanda, Vihiga County. The farmer runs the venture alongside her daughter Edna Kaveza who resorted to farming after multiple failed attempts to secure a job.

“I went from office to office dropping my CV hoping to get a call. But nothing came through. I only received regrets. I tried consultancy but it was fruitless because I did not have any wealth of experience that attracts deals,” The Kenyatta University Bachelor of Arts degree in Psychology graduate said.

The farm which targets 100 dairy cows  in the next five years currently hosts eight dairy cows producing 100 litres per day on a normal season and as high as 150 litres during high peak seasons.

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“If we continue with breading at the farm with each cow getting higher and superior pedigree semen through Artificial Insemination, we can get more animals and also increase milk production,”  says the farmer adding that the business is challenging given the costly animal feeds.

“A bag of 90kg bag of dairy meal goes for about Ksh 3,600. Our biggest challenge as farmers is the price of feeds, and we hope as the government subsidises other farm inputs, it would also consider dairy feeds,” she stated.

Margaret’s prowess in dairy farming, which she has been undertaking for six years has seen her partner with Vihiga Dairy Cooperative Society, which uses her farm to teach other farmers good farming practices.

She has also  won a tender at the cooperative where she supplies milk at Ksh 50 per litre, meaning she makes up to Ksh 5,000 per day from selling milk.