Kenya: Fertiliser and Disease Partly to Blame for Maize Shortage

armyworms

Suspect subsidized fertilizer and a lethal maize disease are partly to blame for the current acute shortage of Kenya's staple food.

Experts are warning of more shortage as armyworms move across the North Rift maize belt destroying the current crop.

The bad fertilizer, supplied by the government, led to uneven germination and stunted growth of the plant.

In an ironic twist, some of the importers of the fertiliser are the same ones now importing maize to bridge the shortfall in production.

The fertiliser was given to farmers in Trans Nzoia and Uasin Gishu at Sh1,800 per 50kg bag down from the normal price of Sh2,800.

However, farmers soon complained that the ingredient stunted their crop instead of boosting it.

On Tuesday, farmers in the North Rift said that yields in the region dropped drastically this year, a situation they attributed to distribution of substandard fertiliser in the region during the planting season last year.

Mr James Rogony, a farmer from Ziwa in Uasin Gishu was categorical that substandard fertiliser was to blame for poor yields last year in the region.

 

"Unlike last year, this season is totally different as we have witnessed uniform growth of maize yet we used the same 23.23.0 fertiliser. This shows last year's fertiliser was substandard," said Mr Rogony who owns over 100 acres of land.

ONE ACRE

He said that he realised a yield of 1,500 kilogrammes an acre in 2015 compared to 900 kilogrammes an acre in 2016.

Last year, maize crops in the region developed a strange colour that farmers attributed to poor fertiliser.

But the government then ruled out a possible link between subsidised fertiliser and the colouration of the maize plants.

"A technical team of soil and crop experts from Kephis and Kenya Bureau of Standards conducted analysis on soil, crop and fertiliser samples which showed that the fertiliser is above the acceptable standards. Indeed, the analysis confirmed that the government subsided fertiliser is within scientific requirements and is not adulterated," said Agriculture Principal Secretary of Agriculture, Dr Richard Lesiyampe who toured the region then.

Dr Lesiyampe blamed the heavy rains that had caused water logging and slow release of the NPK 23:23 fertiliser's nutrients to the root system of the young plants.

But farmers were worried that the fertiliser could have contributed to the dissatisfactory yields last season.

In 2015, farmers in the region lost more than 260,000 hectares of maize crop valued at Sh2 billion to invasion by the viral Maize Lethal Negrosis (MLN) in parts of Rift Valley.

The North Rift region is Kenya's grain basket, producing more than half of the nearly 40 million bags yearly.

ARMYWORM INVASION

Last year, maize production in the region dropped from 21 million bags to 16 million bags but this is feared to worsen this year if the armyworm invasion is not checked.

Mr Nelson Kemei, agronomist in the region said that the destructive pest cannot be easily detected and has advised farmers to do scouting of their farms on daily basis to combat it.

"The pest confuses farmers as it resembles a stalk borer and it's very destructive. Farmers risk total crop failure if not checked," said Mr Kemei.

According to Mr Kemei, the invasive insect lays over 2,000 eggs in its lifetime and they can spread over a large area in a short time especially at night.

Small scale farmers are the worst hit as the price of chemicals to combat the pest is out of reach to most of them.

For instance, one belt of the pesticide which can spray 12.5 acres costs Sh22, 000.

"The county and national governments should liaise and ensure the subsidisation of the chemicals if assurance of food security in the region is to be achieved," said Samuel Birir, a farmer from Moiben in Uasin Gishu.

The armyworms have destroyed maize crop in Kitale, Bungoma, Kakamega, Uasin Gishu, Trans Nzoia, Busia, Nandi, Kericho, Baringo and Nakuru.

UNCOORDINATED MANAGEMENT

At the same time, farmers in the North Rift have faulted the government over what they called uncoordinated management of affairs in the Ministry of Agriculture.

On Tuesday, the farmers in the grain basket said that they were up to task to ensure that the country is food secure.

"Unfortunately the government is turning out to brokers instead of assisting hardworking farmers produce optimally," said Mr Kipkorir Menjo, the county director of the Uasin Gishu branch of the Kenya Farmers Association.

"The government is spending a lot in importing maize. This money should have been used to support local farmers. We need a paradigm shift to remove brokers from the supply chain," said Mr Menjo.

The government is under fire for importing more than 330,000 bags of maize from Mexico under a shadowy deal which has sparked a public outcry.