President William Ruto’s economic adviser David Ndii has attributed milk shortages on supermarket shelves to rising demand, saying that workers at affordable housing and other construction sites are among the new consumers driving consumption.
Ndii said Kenya had not experienced a milk production shortage, arguing that national output and the amount of milk taken in by processors had increased since the current administration took office.
Speaking on Tuesday, he cited Kenya National Bureau of Statistics (KNBS) data, saying milk production had risen by 20 per cent to about 5.6 billion litres.
He also said milk intake by processors had increased by 34 per cent over the same period.
“If there is no reduction in supply, and there is actually a very sharp increase in both production and the intake by processors, what can explain the stock-outs on the shelves?” Ndii asked.
He argued that increased demand was the remaining explanation, pointing to workers at construction sites as an example of a group whose milk consumption may have risen.
“If you go to any of our construction sites, where we are doing affordable housing, where there are a couple of hundred thousand people working every day, you will find crates of milk sitting there,” he said.
Ndii said milk was among the provisions made available to workers at construction sites, adding that the consumption patterns of lower-income households could be changing.
His remarks come amid continued reports of milk shortages in supermarkets and retail outlets, with some shops rationing purchases and consumers reporting difficulty finding their preferred brands.
In an October 19 report, it was found that formal milk deliveries to processors had declined from 88.89 million litres in May to 75 million litres in August 2026, a drop of about 16 per cent.
The Kenya Dairy Board attributed the decline largely to drought and pressure on animal feed, while the report also highlighted challenges involving milk collection, processing and distribution.
The KNBS August 2026 Leading Economic Indicators dashboard also recorded formal milk intake of 77.1 million litres, down 5.1 per cent from 81.3 million litres in July.
The figures raise a distinction between total milk production and the volume entering formal processing channels as increased annual production does not necessarily guarantee consistent deliveries to processors or adequate stocks of packaged milk in shops.
Ndii maintained that increased consumption as a possible reason for the stockouts.
The milk shortage has also affected prices. KNBS data report showed that fresh packaged milk prices rose by six per cent in September, while ultra-high-temperature milk increased by eight per cent.
