In Bomet County, a farmer checks her phone—a message beeps, confirming that she can purchase subsidized fertilizer with the e-voucher she received. But getting it won’t be easy. She must travel many kilometers to the nearest National Cereals and Produce Board store and join the long queues with potentially thousands of other farmers. Meanwhile, the planting season is slipping away. She’s left with a tough decision: wait and risk missing the planting window, or buy less from the open market at higher prices, knowing that reduced fertilizer use could mean lower yields.
Although the farmer above is imaginary, the situation is very much real. And for farmers like her, fertilizer isn’t a climate issue but a necessity for sustaining their livelihoods.
But let’s zoom out for a moment. Fertilizers are essential for food production, yet they pose a myriad of environmental challenges. Nitrogen fertilizers, in particular, drive greenhouse gas emissions, contribute to biodiversity loss, and degrade water and soil quality when overused. While global efforts focus on decarbonizing production, fertilizer availability and price volatility remain even more pressing issues for farmers —especially in regions far from major fertilizer production hubs.
In Kenya, where nearly all fertilizers are imported, long-distance supply chains and the resulting high prices directly impact smallholder farmers. Addressing these challenges requires solutions that not only lower emissions but also improve availability and affordability. At Clim-Eat, we have been exploring ways to:
- Decarbonize nitrogen fertilizer production through technological innovations
- Reduce import dependency by assessing opportunities for localized green ammonia production
- Advance soil health alongside sustainable fertilizer use, a key topic of discussion at our recent convening with CIFOR-ICRAF in Nairobi
However, any new solution—whether technological, policy-driven, or market-based—must fit within the realities of Kenya’s existing fertilizer system. To understand these dynamics, we interviewed stakeholders across the supply chain, from producers and importers to agro-dealers and farm owners. Their perspectives reveal a system at a crossroad, shaped by recent market interventions, logistical bottlenecks, and knowledge gaps, while offering suggestions on how to address these challenges.
The fertilizer supply chain in Kenya
From private to public sector markets
In recent years, Kenya’s fertilizer market has shifted considerably. COVID-19 and the Russian invasion sent prices soaring, prompting the government to get more involved with heavier subsidies and other interventions. Today, the government controls 70% of the fertilizer market. While public procurement has offered more price stability for the buyer, the shift from a private sector-driven to a public sector-driven fertilizer market has challenged private sector investments.
“Government actions have changed the market signals, making it difficult for investments…Our diverse portfolio of fertilizer products is now out, as it doesn’t fit into the subsidy scheme and can’t compete with subsidized products.” (Producer).
Flow of fertilizers
Kenya relies on imports, primarily from Saudi Arabia, Turkey, and Russia. While private companies handle imports, the government influences the amount supplied through the National Cereals and Produce Board (NCPB), which places buy tenders for subsidized fertilizers. Fertilizers arrive at the ports of Mombasa (Kenya) and Dar es Salaam (Tanzania) ideally 3-5 months before planting, where they undergo clearance by KEBS inspectors, ensuring compliance with Kenyan standards when it comes to safety, composition, and labeling regulations.
Fertilizers mostly arrive in the country in compounds and undergo blending. There are currently around 10 blending plants in Kenya—a significant increase in the past decade— though only a fraction of the installed capacity is being used. From there, fertilizers reach farmers via three main channels:
- NCPB depots, where government-subsidized fertilizers are sold with a 60% price reduction.
- Big distributors and agro-dealers, who supply fertilizers at market rates.
- Vertically integrated supply chains, such as ‘agtech’ and big cooperatives, offer tailored input packages to their target groups and occasionally import themselves.
Yet, major challenges persist and are often experienced by the farmer at the end of the supply chain.
Farmers struggle to access subsidized fertilizers due to depot distances, and the time-consuming travel can become costly. They can turn to agro-dealers, often located closer to the farm, but the open market prices remain volatile and high for imported fertilizers. Sometimes, they enter the NCPB depots just to find day-long queues or empty shelves. This can be a result of a prolonged clearance process at the port, delays in payments to the tender-winning suppliers who then withhold their deliveries, or a lack of capacity to effectively distribute and store fertilizers down the NCPB supply chain.
Differing knowledge gaps also affect the established and alternative fertilizer supply chains. Farmers often lack guidance on which fertilizers best suit their soils and crops, further affecting the reliance on blanket products that may not meet specific needs. Agro-dealers, who play a crucial role in distribution, may struggle with financial literacy, making it harder for them to secure fertilizers on credit and expand supply. At the policy level, decision-makers often lack evidence on emerging products like green ammonia or the effectiveness of alternative supply chains, making it difficult to support or invest in new solutions.
How could we alleviate these issues?
In the interviews, perspectives on how to address Kenya’s fertilizer challenges varied widely. Some emphasized reducing government involvement and restructuring subsidies, while others focused on improving distribution through agro-dealers or shifting attention from input markets to boosting farm productivity. There were also differing views on whether to optimize the existing import-reliant system or invest in domestic production. So, what are some potential ways forward, both now and in the long term?
Strengthening distribution in the short term
In the near term, making subsidized fertilizers more accessible is critical. Expanding NCPB’s capacity and integrating agro-dealers into the subsidy model could help fertilizers reach more farmers, though concerns remain over increased costs from private-sector storage, transport and the increased number of middlemen. Discussions are ongoing about restructuring the subsidized supply chains and bringing back the e-voucher system, which reimbursed farmers for buying from agro-dealers.
Building long-term resilience with localized production
In the long run, domestic fertilizer, and especially nitrogen, production could provide a more economically stable and environmentally sustainable solution. Kenya has strong potential for green nitrogen production, providing a viable alternative to imports, with players like Talus Ag demonstrating small-scale production viability with their Naivasha facility. Associations, such as OFIMAK, are working to create market conditions that would support manufacturing organic fertilizers in Kenya. Scaling up such initiatives could reduce dependency on volatile global markets, free up foreign currency, close the fertilizer gap, and help the country transition toward more self-sufficient and lower-carbon fertilizer supply chains. And for a farmer like the one in Bomet, this transition could mean less time and money spent on traveling and queuing and more reliable access to affordable fertilizers.
