AFA Boosts Oil Crops Farming to Slash Kenya’s Import Bill

In Summary

• Agriculture and Food Authority (AFA) promotes oil crops to reduce KSh 160 billion edible oil import bill.
• Nakuru County receives 5,000 kg of canola seeds for 600 farmers across 1,250 acres.
• Kenya produces only 34% of its 900,000-tonne annual edible oil demand, importing 66%.
• Edible Oil Crops Promotion Project (EOCPP) targets sunflower, canola, soybean, and coconut.
• Challenges include low production, high input costs, and limited value-addition facilities.
• Goal to increase local production to 50% by 2028, creating 200,000 jobs.

The Agriculture and Food Authority (AFA), in collaboration with Nakuru County, is intensifying efforts to promote oil crop farming to cut Kenya’s KSh 160 billion annual edible oil import bill, as announced during a seed distribution event in Nakuru on August 6, 2025.

The initiative, part of the Sh981 million Edible Oil Crops Promotion Project (EOCPP) launched in July 2023, aims to boost production of sunflower, canola, soybean, and coconut to meet the country’s 900,000-tonne annual demand, of which only 34% (306,000 tonnes) is locally produced.

AFA’s Nuts and Oil Crops Directorate distributed 5,000 kg of canola (rapeseed) seeds to 600 farmers in Nakuru’s 11 sub-counties, targeting 1,250 acres during the current rainy season. County Executive Committee Member (CECM) for Agriculture Leonard Bor highlighted canola’s benefits as a rotational crop for cereal farmers, noting its ability to enhance soil health, suppress pests, and improve yields of crops like wheat and barley.

“This initiative will reduce import reliance and lower cooking oil prices,” Bor said, emphasizing the creation of over 200,000 direct and indirect jobs through cottage industries and livestock feed production.

Douglas Kangi, AFA’s Director of Crop Resources, underscored the potential of oil crops like sunflower (e.g., Sunbeam, Kenya Fedha varieties), which yield 25 bags per acre and mature in 3–4 months, compared to recyclable Open Pollinated Varieties. Sunflower by-products, such as cakes, have a ready market in animal feed industries. “Farmers can triple profits through value addition, like processing seeds into oil at household levels,” Kangi noted.

Kenya’s heavy reliance on imports, primarily palm oil from Southeast Asia, saw 720,000 tonnes (valued at KSh 98.9 billion) imported in 2023. The EOCPP, co-funded by the National Treasury (KSh 400 million) and AFA (KSh 581 million), targets expanding sunflower farming to 200,000 acres across 24 counties, including Nakuru, Bungoma, and Busia, with 2.5 million tonnes of seeds developed at KALRO’s Alupe centre. Additionally, 120,000 acres are earmarked for canola and 100,000 for palm oil by 2027 in Homa Bay and Siaya.

Farmers like Jane Wambui from Molo face challenges, including high input costs and limited access to processing facilities. “We need affordable seeds and machines to process oil locally,” she said. AFA is addressing this through exemptions on import levies for nuts and oil crops under the Crops Act 2013, effective April 17, 2025, and by promoting small-scale processing units.

The initiative aligns with Kenya’s 2023–2027 AFA Strategic Plan, which emphasizes sustainable agriculture and market access. By 2028, the government aims to increase local edible oil production to 50%, reducing imports, stabilizing prices, and empowering farmers through training and value-addition support.