Thinks beyond maize, Munya tells Meru farmers

Meru County governor Peter Munya has asked maize farmers in the region to think beyond maize as their only staple food.

The farmers, he said, should try to plant alternative crops that are drought resistant and fast maturing.

He singled out sweet potatoes, millet, cassava and sorghum as the most viable options.

“Most of the farmers have continued to focus only on maize even when the rains fail every season. It is the high time we did things differently and embraced other traditional crops to ensure food security,” he said.

He noted that although maize farmers have been reluctant to plant other crops, the county government through the agriculture department would encourage farmers through extension services to change their mind-sets and improve on crop rotation.

He said it was important to sensitise farmers and advise them on the best farming practices that are informed by the amount of rainfall and land sizes.

CERTIFIED SEEDS

Mr Munya said they should also buy seeds certified by the Kenya Plant Health Inspectorate Service (KPHIS) to combat diseases and low production yields.

The county boss was speaking at the Meru National Cereals and Produce Board (NCPB) depot after distributing a consignment 15,000 bags of subsidized fertiliser to be delivered to five of the nine sub counties in Meru.

A second consignment will be delivered before the end of this week.

The cost of a bag of DAP fertiliser has dropped from Sh2,400 to Sh2,000 while that of CAN is down to Sh2,000 from Sh2,300 with Urea selling ta Sh1,500.

“It is now the county government's concern and mandate to ensure that the fertiliser is available throughout the year.

DECENTRALISED DISTRIBUTION

We are also saving them from incurring losses by way of transport costs by decentralising the distribution of farming inputs,” he said.

At the same time, he announced that the county government will soon be introducing an initiative targeting livestock farmers to improve meat and milk production in the region.

The governor said such farmers need high yielding animals that can boost dairy and beef production.

County executive in charge of agriculture Prof M'Ribu reiterated that the county government was committed to food security and value addition of crops to boost Meru's economic growth.

Prof M'Ribu expressed optimism that with the current agricultural initiatives, the county will soon be food secure adding that food insecurity was a major stumbling block to development in the region.

He urged farmers to embrace modern agricultural methods to boost crop production in the county.

Meru NCPB depot manager, Bedah Etyang said there was enough fertiliser to be distributed to farmers in the county.