The government will distribute one million pyrethrum seedlings to farmers in a move aimed at ensuring the country recaptures control of the global pyrethrum market share.
Chief of Staff and Head of Public Service Felix Koskei said that the government's pyrethrum revival plan was gathering momentum even as the growing demand for natural insecticides continued to present a significant opportunity for the country's pyrethrum industry.
Koskei admitted that the country was once a major supplier of the cash crop to the global market accounting for over 70 percent, where the crop earned farmers a lot of money between the 1970s and 1990s.
The chief of staff noted that demand for the Kenyan pyrethrum was presently the highest in international markets with the European Union and the United States said to be keen on chemicals sprayed on horticulture products entering their markets adding that the local pyrethrum has a ready market owing to its high quality.
