Electricity is a key component of agricultural production. It is the main drive from crop to animal production. The majority of farmers have moved to mechanization to lower the cost of labour and improve the efficiency of production.
If Kenya Power’s proposal to raise the price of electricity by 78 % in April is approved by the Energy and Petroleum Regulatory Authority EPRA, it will mean an increase in the cost of agricultural production by over 50%.
This will affect the food security status of the country despite government efforts to subsidize fertilizers.
This is how agriculture will be hit by increased electricity prices.
1. Increase in cost of feeds and animal by-products
The cost of feeds has been high since COVID-19 hit the country and has been rising. Feed industries have attributed this to the high cost of inputs and supplements. This has made dairy, poultry, and piggery farming very expensive for farmers.
The formulation of feeds is done using an electricity-powered machine. The increasing cost of electricity means the cost will be high. This cost will be transferred to farmers, increasing the already high cost of feeds.
Electricity is used for the chuff-cutters, lighting for broiler and layer farming, incubators, milking machines, and cold storage facilities.
In the long run, this means farmers and processors will have to increase the prices of milk, eggs, and meat for them to make any profit. But will consumers buy these products at high prices? No! What will happen is that traders will opt for cheaper imports from Tanzania and Uganda.
Read Also: Factors to consider when buying seeds
2. High Agro-processing cost
Farmers have long been encouraged to engage in value addition on raw products to enhance returns. Value addition in agriculture has created more jobs, especially for youths. The machines in use, though small, use electricity, while few are powered by solar and fuel.
Increasing electricity prices will eat up their profit farming margin as transferring the cost to end consumers is challenging. Finally, it will push many out of business.
3. Increased irrigation cost
Kenya and East Africa have been experiencing prolonged drought for almost three years in a row now. A massive campaign has been conducted to sensitize farmers to the importance of embracing irrigation agriculture. In this form, the farmer provides the crops with water instead of waiting for the rains.
This is done through drip irrigation, overhead irrigation, or even canal/basal irrigation. The water is usually pumped to the farms using pumps that use electricity, solar energy, or diesel. The majority of these small-scale farmers use electric pumps.
The increasing cost of electricity will almost double, which means most farmers won’t do irrigation since margins will be minimal. Large-scale farmers might be forced to cut the production acreage to remain sustainable for the cost of electricity.
Electricity in itself is a critical variable in agriculture. An increase in its cost can push thousands of farmers out of farming, increasing food costs and inflation.
If a nation wants to achieve the United Nations’ sustainable goal of food security, it has to ensure that all the variables affecting agriculture are affordable to farmers. These variables are interdependent.
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