A section of devolved units say they require 50 million shillings annually to increase production of indigenous foods.
Speaking during the national dialogue on agric food systems, county chief executive officers in charge of agriculture said the demand for indigenous foods remain high and farmers cannot meet the demand due to low production.
Kisumu County, executive officer in charge of agriculture Erick Omondi says his county is planning to aggregate indigenous farmers and farm cooperatives to enjoy economies of scale when purchasing farm equipment.
“Even what we are producing as a county is not enough to meet the demand, we need to aid farmers to access farm inputs cheaply”. Observed Omondi.
His Counterpart from Tharaka Nithi, Peter Kimathi Njeru says indigenous crops can reduce the country food import bill as the crops are drought resistant.
“The costs of producing indigenous crops is cheap since it requires minimal chemicals to produce hence lowering the cost of producing foods”. Side Njeru.
Vihiga County Agriculture Chief executive officer Dominic Luvavu says the County has a 50 million annual indigenous farming funding gap and there is need for development partners to increase funding.
The two days National Dialogue on Agri-Food Systems forum, themed Indigenous Foods for Health and Wealth, sort to explore ways to monetize and commercialize indigenous crops.
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