The government has set aside KSh 414 million in the 2024/2025 financial year for the edible oils value chain, in a plan that involves boosting the production of sunflower, palm oil and canola by working with counties.
- In 2023, 70 tonnes of sunflower seeds were purchased, with 40 tonnes distributed to farmers.
- Another 40 tonnes of seed have been allocated to the Agricultural Development Corporation for seed multiplication.
- Additionally, the Agriculture and Food Authority has procured and distributed 500 metric tonnes of seeds worth KSh241 million.
Kenya has an annual consumption of edible oil estimated at over 900,000 metric tonnes, with just 80,000 metric tonnes being sourced locally, which costs the country about KSh 100 billion.
In addition to vegetable oil processing, the edible oil value chain feeds into the cosmetic, pharmaceutical, and food processing industries.
Among the big players in the edible oils space in Kenya is Kakuzi Plc, which is gearing up to tap into the Kenya Kwanza initiatives for this segment of the agricultural sector.
“To enhance our capacity to coordinate agricultural production and deliver services to the sector more efficiently, we are developing and integrating a farmers’ and agripreneurs database into the Kenya Integrated Agriculture Information System,” said President William Ruto.
“The power of this database is beyond doubt. In recent months, farmers have been able to access subsidized fertilizer from the Fertilizer Subsidy Programme, as well as animal feed and certified seeds more easily and affordably,” he added, “Since we began to distribute subsidized fertilizer last year, 15 million 50kg bags of crop- and soil-specific fertilizers have been distributed.”
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