The price of hay in Nakuru County has increased from Sh.50 per bale two months ago to Sh.200 currently translating to a 400 per cent increase.
The Chairman of Hay farmers in the County, Noah Cheruiyot attributed the soaring increase to the drought and subsequent scarcity of pasture.
Cheruiyot said it was unfortunate that majority of the farmers sold their hay at only Sh.50 last year due to a glut and lack of storage space, and now the same is being bought at Sh.200 per bale.
The Chairman was addressing a press conference in Nakuru town on Tuesday.
He attributed the losses farmers incurred to the county government’s poor planning, saying whenever there is an oversupply of any product, simple things like storage spaces forced farmers to sell the same at throw-away prices.
‘’It’s unrealistic to expect farmers to mange everything from planting to marketing and yet farming was devolved in order to bring services closer. Thus, we expect support from the county governments in every way,’’ he said.
Cheruiyot regretted that farmers have been left to the mercies of middlemen and consumers who were always bargaining for the lowest possible prices.
He added that the hay farmers were surprised when the county failed to come to their aid and ended up selling a bale of hay at prices which did not meet even the cost of seeds.
By Veronica Bosibori
