Due to the reduction of packed milk countrywide as a result of drought, fears are rife that unscrupulous traders are seeking to plug the gap by adulterating the product to increase volumes.
On Thursday, the Kenya Dairy Board (KDB) warned traders against lacing milk with water, chemicals or other substances, urging consumers not to buy unpasteurised milk from unregulated traders.
KDB Chairman Genesio Mugo said those caught selling adulterated milk would face the law. Kenya’s Dairy Produce Safety Regulations define adulteration as adding or subtracting a substance so that milk’s natural composition and quality are negatively affected.
The guidelines prohibit selling adulterated or misbranded dairy produce. Offenders face a fine of up to Sh10,000 or imprisonment for up to 12 months, or both.
Mr Alex Gathii Gitonga, founder and managing director of Tanolope Consultancy Limited, a firm that targets improving dairy farming in Kenya and other African countries, said adulteration entails changing milk’s natural composition.
“When you adulterate milk, it will behave in funny ways. It will change the boiling point, it will change the colour, it will change the way it tastes,” said Mr Gitonga, adding that consumers may notice an unusual smell, colour, taste or thickness. Milk containing peroxide, he said, may taste unusually acidic or produce a burning sensation. Unscrupulous traders add hydrogen peroxide to prolong milk’s shelf life.
Amid the adulteration conversation, Mr Gitonga said the current milk shortage opens a window into the problems plaguing Kenya’s livestock sector.
State Department for Livestock Development Principal Secretary Jonathan Mueke (centre) with Kenya Dairy Board Chairman Genesio Mugo (left) and Kenya Dairy Processors Association (KDPA) Chairman Kenneth Gitonga address journalists on the current milk supply situation in the country at Kilimo House, Nairobi, on September 3, 2026.
Photo credit: Lucy Wanjiru | Nation
According to KDB, formal deliveries to processors fell from 88.89 million litres in May to 84.44 million litres in June, and June’s intake was 6.4 per cent below the same month of 2025. In July, processors received 84.4 million litres in June to 81.3 million litres, a 3.7 per cent decline, and preliminary August figures pointed to a further fall.
KDB has attributed the “temporary” constraints mainly to dry and cold conditions in key milk-producing areas.
But for Mr Gitonga, the drought is only the most visible part of a deeper production problem.
Many cows, he told Nation, are short of protein, energy and quality minerals, while poor agronomy and late harvesting leave fodder fibrous and less nutritious. At the same time, farmers pay more for commercial feed whose quality can be uneven.
“The cows are supposed to be lying down between 14 to 16 hours. There is poor cow comfort. The Kenyan cow is stressed, actually,” Mr Gitonga said in an interview on Friday. “There’s heat stress, there’s water stress, there’s social stress.”
He estimated heat stress can cut milk output by 10 to 15 per cent and urged farmers to provide each cow with 100 to 150 litres of clean water a day, shade, ventilation, comfortable resting space and consistent rations.
“Milk production is not a matter of performing miracles. It is feeding. It is the feeding system. It is management,” he said, cautioning against buying high-yield genetics before fixing basic husbandry.
Kenya already has enough cows, he argued, but average output remains low because farms do not measure feed costs, growth, conception and daily yield.
A shopper carries a basket with milk at Naivas Lifestyle in Nairobi.
Photo credit: Billy Ogada | Nation Media Group
“Even when there is bumper fodder, still our milk processing plants are operating below 50 percent,” Mr Gitonga argued. “Our installed capacity is under-utilised because nobody is investing in the milk production due to lack of fodder plans.”
KDB’s dairy profile estimates national production at 5.2 billion litres a year, with average yields of only seven to nine litres per cow per day. It says about 1.8 million smallholder households depend on dairy and that licensed processing capacity is about 3.75 million litres a day.
Mr Caleb Korir, Tanolope’s business development manager, said feed planning should begin with a full-year calculation of what a herd will need.
“When farmers lack that business planning in terms of the projection and say, ‘This year I need these tonnes of feeds and minerals to be able to take care of my cows for the entire year,’ then once the drought hits, you won’t be able to sustain your farm,” he said.
The board also urged consumers not to buy unpasteurised milk from unregulated traders.
Photo credit: AI Assisted Graphic | Anthony Sitti
Mr Gitonga recommend properly timed fodder harvesting, silage and hay conservation, and fodder merchants who can supply cooperatives throughout the year.
Even if rain began immediately, he said, pasture would need another month or two to recover. The official October-December 2026 outlook projects above-average rain across most principal dairy counties, including Kiambu, Kericho, Nakuru, Nyandarua, Nyeri, Uasin Gishu and Nandi.
Amid the shortage, the government is considering mechanisms to preserve surplus milk during flush seasons and release it when production falls. Mr Gitonga warned that importing milk powder as a general response would be a “knee-jerk reaction” that could disrupt local market dynamics. His preference is investment in fodder, farm productivity, input quality and farmer support.
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