Farmers risk losing half their harvest, agency warns

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Raphael Juma, a farmer from Kisii, receives a a key of a pickaup he won from Bayer East Africa as the grand prize for their 3-month Dekalb Scratch & Win National Consumer Promotion Campaign [ Jenipher Wachie, Standard ]

Kenyan farmers risk losing up to half of their expected harvest due to counterfeit and uncertified seed, warns the Kenya Plant Health Inspectorate Service (KEPHIS), raising concerns about the growing threat posed by fake farm inputs to food security.

Speaking at a farmer awareness campaign organised by Bayer, Ephraim Wachira, Deputy Director for Seed Certification at KEPHIS, said that fake seed remains a major challenge for maize production nationwide.

“You can imagine a farmer who has prepared land, bought fertiliser and used labour, only to harvest maybe 50 per cent because of poor-quality seed,” Wachira said.