- Kenya is among the largest producers of milk in Africa according to the Kenya Dairy Board (KDB).
- Annual milk production is at an estimated 5.2 billion litres.
Image: HANDOUTS
Brookside Dairy milk processor is seeking to expand its market share in the hospitality sector.
The processor has partnered with national hoteliers’ lobby Kenya Association of Hotelkeepers and Caterers.
Joseph Muguongo, Brookside’s general manager for sales, said the processor has made deeper investments in its product value chain to ensure sustained high-quality products to its customers.
He said they are planning to further increase the uptake of its products as it eyes a bigger slice of the local dairy market.
“The business partnership with hoteliers seeks to further enhance our market share in the dairy products category. Hotels and catering outlets in the country constitute a core sales segment in our market consolidation strategy, and we will continue to prioritise supply orders from hoteliers countrywide,” Muguongo said.
He spoke in Diani, Kwale during the KAHC annual symposium, where he presented a cash donation of Sh1 million and product samples and merchandise worth Sh700,000 to support this year’s hoteliers’ symposium.
Muguongo said the processor was keen on a symbiotic approach to its business engagement with members of the hotelkeepers’ association, as the processor had the largest dairy sales footprint in the region, and was ready to serve markets in all corners of the country.
KAHC chief executive officer Mike Macharia commended the processor for supporting association members over the years.
The KAHC membership mainly comprises of star-rated hotels, restaurants, lodges, tented camps and residential cottages, all big consumers of dairy products.
He said members were keen on high quality products, which he said enhanced patronage of hotels and other catering outlets.
The annual hoteliers’ symposium provides a forum for stakeholders in the hospitality industry to seek ways to market Kenya as a preferred tourist destination.
“We commend the government for fast tracking the improvement of tourism roads across the country, which has led to easier access to hospitality facilities across the country,” Macharia said.
According to the 2023 Kenya Dairy Board annual report, Kenya is among the largest producers of milk in Africa, with an estimated cattle herd population of 5.02 million.
In 2022, the country recorded an annual milk production of 5.2 billion litres. Kiambu, Meru, Nyandarua, Nakuru, Uasin Gishu, Nandi, Trans Nzoia, Embu, Murang’a, Bomet, Turkana, Kakamega and Kericho counties each produced more than 100 million litres of milk.
Out of this, about four billion litres (75 per cent of the total production) was cow milk, while that of camels, goats and sheep was approximately at 1.1 billion litres, 273 million litres, and 107 million litres respectively.
KDB further said the industry provides a source of livelihood to an estimated 1.8 million households, 750,000 direct jobs and half a million indirect jobs.