Mr Chelule has been culling the goats by selling some, so as to keep the optimum number of 15, which to him is manageable. He adds that they are in high demand. “Indeed, surrounding farmers have booked even those long to be kindled,” he says laughing. So are there any challenges in this business? “Oh yes. The main one is the price of milk.
Experts put the price of a litre at least at Sh50 because of the high colorific value, but few can buy at that price here. So we have to make do with Sh30,” says the 36-year-old father of four children.
He says that since he started the business, his lifestyle has changed for the better, and he does not need to depend on loans to educate his children and for other development projects anymore.
The problem of prices notwithstanding, Narok north livestock production development officer, Mr Christopher Kunder, says rearing dairy goats is a very economical venture and urges more farmers in the district to go into it. “Even here in Maasailand, land is diminishing through wheat farming and population growth. More people should be encouraged to go into rearing of fewer and more productive animals,” he says, adding that almost anybody with some land can afford to start the business and is assured of high returns. Crossbred milking goats are proving to be a popular source of income, household milk and manure for smallholder farms in medium to high potential zones of Kenya. In a project to introduce such goats to poorer farmers, FARM Africa in conjunction with the government, has identified the problem of sustaining the supply of improved breeding and has taken to upgrading local animals to meet the soaring demand.
