Households across the country are facing rising milk prices and reduced supplies as major brands disappear from supermarket shelves. Some retailers have introduced purchase limits, while fresh milk prices in parts of Nairobi have increased from approximately KSh70 to KSh80 per litre.

The shortage has been linked to delayed rainfall, poor pastures and rising animal-feed costs. Smallholder farmers, who produce about 80 per cent of Kenya’s milk, have seen daily yields fall from around seven–nine litres to four–five litres per cow. Some farmers are reportedly selling their cows because they can no longer afford to feed them.

Milk intake by formal processors also declined from 88.89 million litres in May 2026 to 84.44 million litres in June, a drop of about five per cent.

The situation highlights the need for urgent government intervention, including affordable animal feed, emergency fodder support and better management of strategic milk reserves. Authorities should also monitor retail prices to protect consumers from unjustified increases while helping farmers restore production.