Poor returns from agriculture threatening food security: report

Change of land use from agricultural to commercial and insecurity fears have been blame for declining crop production in Rift Valley posing serious threat to food security.

Most landowners in peri-urban areas are turning to other commercial activities, especially real estate due to attractive returns compared to crop production.

“Modification of land from agricultural to commercial and settlement, and relocation of farmers due to insecurity fears has led to drastic decline in production of some food crops,” says an annual crop production report released early this year.

The most affected areas are Kiambu, Nakuru, Eldoret, Kitale and Kericho.

“Sub-division of larger farms into small uneconomical plots cannot sustain cultivation of such cash crops like wheat,” said the report.

The most affected crops are wheat and maize. The situation is not helped by erratic climate and use of poor quality fertiliser. Farmers have been forced to diversify to other crops.

Grain farmers in areas such as Molo, Kuresoi, Timboroa and Burnt Forest are now cultivating fast-maturing which need less capital but have better returns.

Profitable

“It is profitable to invest in cultivation of such crops like beans, potatoes and vegetables that attract better returns, compared to maize or wheat ” said Mr John Maina from Burnt Forest, Uasin Gishu County.

Rift Valley produces an average of 19 million bags of maize against consumption of about 8 million bags, reflecting a surplus of nearly 7 million bags. But the targeted maize production of above 20 million bags might not be achieved as farmers are contemplating diversifying to other crops.

According to the agricultural report, the region produced 622,325 bags of beans last season against consumption of 1.668 bags, indicating a huge deficit of the crop.

It also produced 850,432 bags of potatoes from 66,727 hectares but the production is expected to increase this season as more farmers move to cultivate the crop.

Majority of grain farmers in the region are also diversifying into horticultural production and cultivation of such cash crops like tea and coffee which they say attract better returns.

 “It is no longer profitable to invest in wheat and maize farming due to sky-rocketing cost of farm inputs and low producer prices,” said Mr Peter Boit, a larger scale farmer in Uasin Gishu County who has ventured into coffee cultivation.

The farmers cited lack of government support to cushion them from losses caused by natural calamities like floods and drought as a factor that has led to declined acreage under grain.