The Mburugo Dairy Farmers Co-operative Society in Manyatta Constituency, Embu, has been granted a with two state-of-the-art 5,000-liter milk coolers valued at over Ksh. 19 million, from the National Agricultural and Rural Inclusive Growth Project (NARIGP).
This new addition brings the total number of coolers at the cooperative to four, signifying a pivotal step towards enhancing their capabilities.
The cooperative’s members and government officials, including Governor Cecily Mbarire, hailed this development as a game-changer for the region’s dairy industry.
Governor Mbarire emphasized the importance of enhanced capacity, which would enable the station to accommodate more milk from local farmers, contributing to the cooperative’s growth and improved returns.
Speaking during the official commissioning of the coolers, the county boss commended Mburugo Dairy Farmers Co-operative Society as a prime example of the essential role played by cooperatives in sustaining livelihoods.
Kennedy Njagi, the cooperative’s Chief Executive Officer (CEO), shared the practical implications of this expansion.
With the additional coolers, Mburugo Dairy Farmers Co-operative Society is set to double its daily storage capacity,from 11,000 to 21,000 liters.
This allows them to collect more milk from local farmers and also minimizes spoilage, ensuring the milk’s quality is preserved until it reaches the market.
The CEO highlighted the cooperative’s current daily collection rate of 19,000 liters from its 4,769 members.
He expressed their ambition to progressively raise this amount to 30,000 liters and diversify into value-added products, which will attract additional markets and boost revenues. Furthermore, the cooperative is exploring animal feed production, albeit on a small scale due to raw material limitations.
In addition, he also revealed that the cooperative has been actively connecting farmers with experts to provide training on the most suitable farming practices to increase their yields.
They have also facilitated access to financial organizations for credit facilities to support farmers’ growth.
Njagi went on to say that, starting this month, the cooperative will raise the price for farmers from Ksh. 47 to Ksh. 50 for each liter of milk delivered to the plant.
This remarkable investment in Mburugo Dairy Farmers Co-operative Society is poised to make a significant impact on the dairy sector in Embu within the cooperative model.
