Uasin Gishu gubernatorial aspirant Amb. Prof Julius Bitok has spelled out some of the projects he will be seeking to roll out in the Agriculture sector should he win in the upcoming general election.
Prof. Bitok is seeking to be the second governor of Uasin Gishu and says, if successful, he will revive the dairy sector by empowering every household to be able to constantly supply milk to the county coolers through their Savings and Credit Cooperatives (Saccos).
The Kenyan ambassador to Pakistan notes that under his leadership, Uasin Gishu will reclaim its place as the epicenter of milk production and processing in Kenya.
“My plan is to immediately set up a processing plant to do value addition, thereafter dispatch the products to the market. This will enable our farmers get a stable market & better prices for their milk.”
– Amb. Dr Julius Bitok, gubernatorial aspirant Uasin Gishu
For the maize farmers who are currently lamenting over poor market prices and high cost of production, Amb. Bitok says he plans to set up a milling plant as he believes the county has the capacity to produce products from maize that can compete with the already existing one from other millers.
“To our farmers, given mandate next year we will sit down & structure to run our own milling plant where you will supply your maize through saccos, we do value addition & dispatch Uasin Gishu flour to markets. We have the capacity to produce the best & compete for our space in shelves of the various outlets across the country.”
– Amb. Bitok
He also expressed his dissatisfaction over a recent price that the National Cereals and Produce Board (NCPB) announced.
In a notice to the public, NCPB said it was open to receiving maize from farmers at Ksh1,305 per 50 kilograms bag, a price that farmers have rejected, demanding an upward review to at least Ksh1,700.
