Third edition of Meat Expo kicks off with over 70 exhibitors
Nation Media Group CEO Stephen Gitagama at the third edition of the Kenya Meat Expo at KICC Nairobi on June 12, 2024.
What you need to know:
- Livestock farmers from the arid and semi-arid counties are part of the exhibition.
- Key stakeholders challenged to employ technology in monitoring the meat market.
More than 70 exhibitors are taking part in this year’s Kenya Meat Expo at the Kenyatta International Convention Centre (KICC), Nairobi.
Speaking at the opening ceremony, Nation Media Group (NMG) Chief Executive Officer Stephen Gitagama said the meat sector has the potential to change the lives of livestock farmers in the country if fully supported.
“Meat sector could contribute to 20 per cent of our Gross Domestic Product (GDP) and could support over twenty million people,” Gitagama said.
The theme of the three-day event is ‘Revolutionising the Meat Industry for Bottom Up Economic Transformation.’
Hundreds of guests are also part of the event, which seeks to promote the meat sector in the country.
For the first time, livestock farmers from the arid and semi-arid (ASAL) counties are part of the exhibition incorporating them into the full value chain.
Mr Gitagama also reiterated the need for early preparations during the rainy seasons to ensure that livestock farmers will not suffer during drought.
“We need to have a country where our livestock is well taken care of throughout the year," he said.
Mr Gitagama also said that revolutionalising the meat industry will require a shift towards sustainable and edible production practices, where small-scale farmers are equipped with resources and ideas for improving the sector.
The use of technology also featured in the discussion, with key stakeholders challenged to employ such in monitoring the market, and the inputs.
Principal Secretary of the State Department of Livestock Development Jonathan Mweke said the event provides a platform for the stakeholders and investors in the industry to think deeply about the interventions needed to improve the sector going forward.
The PS challenged farmers to improve the breeds of livestock to strengthen the quality of meat from Kenya in the global market.
A chef prepares a variety of grilled meat during the third edition of the Kenya Meat Expo at KICC Nairobi on June 12, 2024.
“We need to improve breeds so that we can get those that produce optimum productivity in the environment that we have here in Kenya, especially in the northern region where our livestock is largely found,” Mr Mweke said.
According to the PS, such breeds will reduce the inputs of feeds, and resistance to disease and drought.
He also said there is a need to do more in the storage of livestock feeds.
The State Department of Livestock Development recently developed a Livestock Bill, which Mr Mweke if passed into law will commercialize the livestock sector in the country.
