This file photo shows Dr. Yoseph Beyene (R), senior maize breeder with the International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center (CIMMYT), addressing researchers and maize breeders during a field day at Maize Lethal Necrosis (MLN) Screening facility in Naivasha, Kenya, April 18, 2017. (Xinhua/Charles Onyango)
Kenya imported approximately 2.4 million metric tons of wheat in 2021 to supplement domestic production, the country's grain milling industry said.
NAIROBI, March 24 (Xinhua) -- Kenya imported approximately 2.4 million metric tons of wheat in 2021 to supplement domestic production, the grain milling industry said Wednesday.
In this file photo, Peter Njau, director of the Durable Rust Resistance in Wheat (DRRW) project at the Kenya Agricultural Research Institute (KARI) in Njoro, Kenya, is seen carrying out research in one of KARI wheat fields. On Sept. 30, 2011. (Xinhua)
Paoma Fernandes, the chief executive officer of the Cereal Miller Association, told Xinhua that local farmers were only able to produce 100,000 metric tons of the grains last year.
"We will continue to rely on imports as farmers cannot meet local consumption needs," Fernandes said on the sidelines of a multi-stakeholder workshop on the fortification of wheat and maize flour in Kenya.
Fernandes said that the bulk of the East African nation's imports in 2021 came from Russia and Ukraine.
"Due to the current conflict between Russia and Ukraine, imports from the region will be severely affected this year," she added.
She observed that Kenya is seeking alternative sources of wheat in order to make up for the shortfall of imports from the Black Sea region that is expected in 2022.
According to the grain milling industry, demand for wheat consumption has been on the increase due to changing diets caused by urbanization as well as rising household incomes. ■
