De Heus Kenya, a Dutch animal feed company, will commission a KSh 3 billion animal feed manufacturing plant in Athi River later this month, marking one of the largest private investments in the livestock input sector in recent years.
- •The facility has an initial annual capacity of 200,000 metric tonnes, expandable to 260,000 tonnes, placing it among the largest feed mills in East Africa.
- •Production will cover compound feeds, concentrates, premixes and specialty feeds for poultry, pigs, ruminants, and aquaculture.
- •Animal feed accounts for up to 70% of total production costs in the livestock sector, while inconsistent quality and import dependence have constrained productivity.
“This factory is about building reliable systems for farmers. By manufacturing feed locally, we are addressing long-standing challenges such as inconsistent quality and dependence on imports, while supporting farmers to improve productivity and profitability,” said Wiehan Visagie, Managing Director of De Heus Kenya.
The investment follows De Heus’ market entry process that began in 2019, after the Dutch animal nutrition group conducted regional viability studies. Kenya was selected for its geographic position, scale of livestock production, and role as a gateway to East African markets. Local manufacturing is expected to reduce supply-chain exposure, improve traceability, and align feed formulations with local farming systems.
The Athi River plant is expected to create about 250 direct jobs and up to 1,000 indirect jobs across logistics, transport, packaging and raw material supply. De Heus plans to source maize and soybeans locally, increasing demand for domestic grain production and supporting rural incomes. Founded in 1911, De Heus operates more than 86 production facilities worldwide.
Kenya’s livestock sector contributes roughly 12% of national GDP and supports millions of livelihoods but output per animal remains below regional and global benchmarks. The new facility adds industrial-scale feed capacity at a time when demand for commercial livestock production is rising faster than input availability.
