Construction of Nyandarua potato storage plant to commence next month

President Uhuru Kenyatta in January this year presided over the groundbreaking ceremony of the 20,000 metric ton storage facility which will be built on a three-acre piece of land in Ol Kalou town.

The facility is one of the three cold storage facilities that the national government plans to set up this month, with others being in Meru and Kisii Counties.

Karanja observed that once complete, the facility that is expected to cost the government Sh100 million will enable farmers to store their potatoes for up to six months, a move that will enable them to sell their harvest at a time when prices are favourable.

The facility is the first of its kind with long-term storage designed to employ a temperature regulation system based on mechanical ventilation to ensure that the produce is safe from weather variables, pests and rodents.

“The plant will also help cut out middlemen from the potato business who have exploited farmers for a very long time,” noted the CAS in Ol Kalou town.

He said that the facility is projected to serve over 1,000 farmers in Nyandarua County which is among the largest producers of potatoes in Kenya with an estimated turnover of Sh5 billion a year.

“Farmers in the region have been incurring huge post-harvest losses from their produce due to poor storage mechanisms. This is why we are putting up the project to save our farmers from these losses,” added the CAS who was accompanied by local leaders led by Deputy Governor Cecilia Mbuthia.

Nyandarua produces over 30 percent of the potatoes consumed in the country but it is estimated that over 40 percent of the potato harvest go to waste as a result of lack of cold storage facilities.

The CAS noted that the project is one of the many initiatives by the Ministry of Industry, Trade and Enterprise Development to not only ensure an all year-round availability of needed food in the wake of climatic fluctuations in the recent years but also enable storage of surplus produce thus minimizing post-harvest risks.