Dairy farmers protest over non-payment of money owned to them by the New Kenya Cooperative Creameries outside KCC Eldoret Factory on November 18, 2025.
For the last four months, James Mwangi, a farmer in Subukia, Nakuru County, has not received payment for the raw milk he supplied to the New Kenya Cooperative Creameries (New KCC).
The processor owes him Sh200,000.
The delayed payments have paralysed his farming activities and made the cost of feeding his animals unbearable.
“I used to feed my cows with silage but now I am not able to do it. Cutting silage per acre costs Sh23,000. I need about Sh400,000 for silage alone and I have been forced to turn to alternative feeds. Milk production from my cows has greatly declined in the past few weeks,” Mwangi told the Daily Nation.
“We are now unable to feed our cows because we lack money to buy animal feeds. Our activities have been grounded. It is unfortunate that we have not received payments for raw milk deliveries for the months of July, August, September and October this year,” he lamented.
The entrance to the New Kenya Cooperative Creameries (KCC) Eldoret Factory in Uasin Gishu County on November 18, 2025.
Another farmer, Anne Kwamboka from Trans Nzoia County, is also struggling to feed her livestock. She is owed Sh500,000 by New KCC.
“Initially, I could generate up to 1,000 litres of milk per day. But due to delayed payments, I’m unable to feed my cows well. My cow’s milk production has dropped to about 600 litres per day. I also had about 14 workers, but I was forced to lay off some because I could not pay all of them,” Ms Kwamboka said.
The two are among hundreds of dairy farmers in the North and South Rift who have been waiting for their delayed payments for raw milk deliveries. The Daily Nation has learnt that farmers are cumulatively demanding more than Sh300 million in pending payments for the last four months.
Farmers' financial hardships
According to the farmers, the crisis now threatens to paralyse dairy farming in the region and across the country.
“We have been forced to sell our milk to private buyers just to raise some money to sustain our activities,” said John Kirwa, a farmer from Eldoret, Uasin Gishu County.
The delays have caused financial hardships affecting farmers’ ability to purchase essential inputs like animal feeds and sustain their livelihoods.
Dairy farmers, led by James Leitich (centre), a representative from Chepkorio Cooperative Society, speak to the media over non-payment of money owned to them by the New Kenya Cooperative Creameries outside KCC Eldoret Factory on November 18, 2025.
“Some of us took loans from financial institutions and banks and we depend on milk sales to make repayments. We are worried about what will happen if we don’t receive the payments by the end of this year. Our children risk being sent home when schools reopen in January,” Mr Kirwa added.
The crisis has affected farmers in Nakuru, Kericho, Nandi, Uasin Gishu, Narok, Nyandarua, Trans Nzoia and other counties.
“We will resort to protests if payments are not settled promptly,” warned Mr Kirwa.
Co-operatives Cabinet Secretary Wycliffe Oparanya has admitted that the milk processing giant is struggling to pay farmers, a situation he said has affected milk production.
Mr Oparanya, who spoke over the weekend in Naivasha during the 4th annual Co-operative and SME conference, also announced plans to privatise New KCC as part of efforts to address farmer payments and improve productivity.
Multi-million-shilling debts
The CS noted that New KCC owes farmers millions of shilling for milk supplied in recent months, adding that the government is working out ways of paying the farmers.
“KCC is currently struggling to pay farmers for milk supplied, and the government is working on a privatisation programme to solve these challenges,” Mr Oparanya said.
This comes at a time when New KCC is grappling with multi-million-shilling debts that are threatening its operations. Among the debts is Sh184.3 million owed to the processor by various government agencies.
Records before the National Assembly Committee on Trade, Industry and Cooperatives show that the Ministry of Defence and the Administration Police Service are the largest debtors, owing New KCC Sh49.49 million and Sh32.38 million respectively.
Kenyatta National Hospital (KNH) owes the company Sh10.53 million, while the facility’s private wing has an outstanding debt of Sh4.45 million. State House is also listed among the debtors, owing the company Sh14.62 million.
The entrance to the New Kenya Cooperative Creameries (KCC) Eldoret Factory in Uasin Gishu County on November 18, 2025.
Additionally, the National Security Intelligence Service has a Sh4 million debt and Nairobi Water and Sewerage Company owes the company Sh2.27 million. Other government agencies owe the company a combined Sh52.24 million.
Earlier this year, the government announced plans to revamp and modernise the company to cushion farmers from unscrupulous middlemen.
Part of these efforts includes modernising KCC factories across the country to restore the once vibrant state-owned processor, according to President William Ruto.
President Ruto also revealed that the government had set aside at least Sh5 billion to establish more branches of the company across the country to ensure farmers fetch higher incomes and the processor receives quality milk directly from the source.
The President also revealed that the company had received a Sh37 billion aid package from India, part of which will be used to modernise the processor.
In the 2023/2024 financial year, the government also set aside Sh700 million in the budget to modernise various New KCC processing units.
