Samson Muthomi, the proprietor of Risa-Molito dairy farm, practicing dairy farming and producing products such as yoghurts.
With a herd of 115 cows, he disclosed that the farm produces at least 1,200 litres of milk per day.
Located in Limuru, the dairy company rose to become among the top producers of milk in the region and a learning center for people interested in dairy farming.
Here is their story as told by WoK.
In an interview with Agri Innovation Hub, Muthomi disclosed that the farm was established in 2004 with five cows.
With time, the farm has grown to have a total of 115 cows as of April 2022.
Out of the 115 cows, 54 are on milking while 5 are dry. They also have 10 calves and 45 heifers.
“These groups are fed in different rations depending on the stage of lactation and the age at which they are at at the moment,” Muthomi said.
He added that in terms of milking, they have the high yielders and the low yielders.
High yielders, he explained, are cows that are less than 120 days after calving and have the potential of high production.
“The dry cows are grouped into two also. We have the recent dried cows and the last month and of calving
“For the heifers we have from the age of four months to nine months and 10 months all the way to calving time,” he added.
Muthomi noted that while naming a cow, they are fitted with an ear tag bearing their name, mother’s name, father’s name and the date of birth.
For the cows on milking, they feed on a Total Mixed Ration (TMR) which comprises of energy in terms of carbohydrates, protein, vitamins and trace elements.
Dry cows on the other hand feed on a mix of napier grass and hay, while steaming cows have dairy meal in their ration.
The calves which are under three months feed on four litres of milk each per day, solid foods such as the early calf weaner pellets and water.
After weaning, the calves are moved to a different pen where they spend four months to six months.
They are then moved to another pen hosting calves aged between six months to eight months, and then eight months to one year.
“From one year, their ration is more of protein and then there is the introduction of dairy meal for them which is formulated in a way that we have high-end protein,” Muthomi explained.
Muthomi pointed out profit margin as among the major advantages of dairy farming that farmers get to enjoy.
“You can easily calculate your cost of production against the sale of your produce in what we call the capital that runs the farm on a daily basis,” he said.
On the other hand, he mentioned that the major challenge of dairy farming is on the cost of feeds.
“We’ve been hit hard by the cost of production in terms of the feeding, if you look at the prices of fertilizer used to grow crops for silage they are high
“The prices have been put to the dairy farmer themselves. It’s a burden because the cost of producing that one litre has become higher,” Muthomi said.
In the next five years, Muthomi hopes to milk at least 1,500 litres of milk per day and sell at least 10 heifers per year to increase revenue.
