Fertilizer retailing at more than Kshs. 30 per kilo hurts productions

[gout]

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Currently DAP is retailing at Shs. 70- 60 while CAN is 'cheaper' by shs. 5. 17:17, 23:23 no different. Worse, there have been rumours that imported fertilizers do not have the said NPK ratios with our officials getting a cut from the reduced percentages while others get their cut from diverting the rest when it lands

The efforts to build and expand local capacities are welcome though I don't understand how the MEA factory would get Vision 2030 flag stead of the Toyota Tsusho one in Eldoret (unless it is a case of our usual lazy journalism). It has been alleged that MEA has been an obstacle to cheap fertilizer since the days of KENREN.

http://www.businessdailyafrica.com/Toyota-kicks-off-Sh123bn-Eldoret-factory/-/539546/2857566/-/13jxoc0z/-/index.html

http://www.nation.co.ke/business/Fertiliser-plant-and-bicycle-maker-get-State-priority/-/996/3231354/-/110b9joz/-/index.html

http://www.nation.co.ke/business/seedsofgold/Eldoret-fertiliser-plant-to-save-Kenya-Sh3bn-yearly/-/2301238/3185260/-/1333pmf/-/index.html

With natural gas -a hydrocarbon rich in Ammonia being abundant in Tanzania, there is real chance to lower cost of fertilizer and in turn agricultural production which would have a domino effect on so many other things-food security, inflation, jobs, value addition, education

[RV Pundit]

Gov subsidy thing is a big joke. The fertilizer is inferior and the whole process is a conduit for pro-fettering for transport companies and guys who buy fertilizers to re-sell. They buy at 1500 from NCPB and re-sell at 3,000 kshs.The best fertilizers are produced here in Africa (Morroco) but GoK somehow end up importing it from Ukraine and other such countries.

Fertilizer is the main missing ingredient for real agriculture productivity to take over. We (sub-sahara) apply five times less fertilizers than anywhere in the world and ours yields are five times less.

It good that Toyota and MEA have now put up factories...and hopefully TZ will...these are the baby steps...that hopefully will see fertilizer being sold really cheaply. Hopefully they don't go belly up like I think Portland cement fertilizer project.

There is a lot we can learn from cement factories...which initially had serious issues..but know the prices have been stable at 650-700shs for years..of course cement should be even more cheaper...at about half the prices.

The answer is more and more competition.