Bridging silage quality gap: A study with smallholder dairy farmers

Silage is vital for Kenya’s smallholder dairy farmers, yet poor quality limits productivity. A CGIAR ILRI demand-driven study in Nandi and Bomet reveals implementation gaps beyond adoption, highlighting farmer-led learning and evidence-based interventions to improve silage quality, resilience, yields, and incomes. Silage is increasingly becoming a critical pillar of smallholder dairy farming in Kenya. Seasonal shortages of quality silage, due to environmental, economic, and management constraints, are a significant challenge to optimal animal productivity. In Bomet and Nandi counties, climate variability and shrinking land sizes are limiting year-round access to reliable and nutritious animal feed. Labour shortages, limited access to suitable equipment, inadequate technical knowledge, and storage challenges affect the quality of silage produced. Poor-quality silage can reduce milk yields, compromise animal health, and erode farm profitability. Strengthening silage quality through farmer-led learning has strong potential to enhance resilience, productivity, and incomes within Kenya’s smallholder dairy sector.