Fodder farming: The new frontier in agri real estate

Changing weather patterns, extreme temperatures, and unpredictable rainfall have made it increasingly challenging for farmers to provide adequate nutrition for their animals.

The crisis is not just agricultural—it is also a land and real estate issue, as the way Kenya allocates and utilises its arable land will shape the nation’s food security and property investment landscape in the years ahead. 

Feeding livestock on grain and other foods that humans consume reduces the global food supply.

This is because livestock convert these human-edible foods into meat and milk in an inefficient way.

According to the Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO), when animals are fed grains that humans could eat directly, a significant amount of the energy and protein in those grains is lost. 

“For every 100 calories of edible grains fed to animals, only 17–30 calories end up in the human food supply as meat or dairy. Similarly, for every 100 grams of grain protein fed to animals, just 43 grams make it into the human food chain. Additionally, 90 per cent of the wild fish used in animal feeds could instead be consumed directly by humans,” says FAO in a new report. 

This inefficiency creates a ripple effect that directly influences land use, property development, and investment in agricultural real estate.

A lot of food gets lost when making animal feed during this process. Big portions of these crops end up being thrown away or lost instead of being used for human food. This happens at different stages—harvesting, storage, or conversion into feed. 

Reducing these losses in the animal feed supply chain could make better use of Kenya’s land resources and address hunger. In real estate terms, it’s about maximising the return on every acre of farmland. 

In Kenya, less than eight per cent of the land is used for crop and feed production, and less than 20 per cent is suitable for cultivation.

With a population that has surpassed 54 million in 2024, demand for both housing and food is rising rapidly, forcing policymakers and investors to think more strategically about how land is utilised. 

According to FAO, there are over 1.55 billion livestock, including 15-20 million cattle, in Kenya. Agriculture, including the livestock industry, contributes about 24 per cent of the country’s total GDP and 60 per cent of its export earnings. 

The livestock sector contributes approximately 12 per cent to Kenya’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) and about 42 per cent of the agricultural GDP.

Two-thirds of Kenyans rely on the crops they grow and the animals they raise for their livelihoods and survival. 

As population growth increases urban demand for real estate, rural areas face another dilemma: how to balance land for housing development with land for food and livestock production.

Already, studies show that due to frustrations with low profits from crop farming, many farmers in Kenya are now converting their land away from staple food crops and instead producing crops for animal feed. 

The high costs of farming inputs like fertilisers and pesticides have made it increasingly difficult for farmers to turn a profit on maize, beans, and wheat.

As a result, a growing number are pivoting to growing crops that can be sold to the animal feed industry.  

In the 2023 Global Hunger Index, Kenya ranked 90th out of 125 countries with available data. With a score of 22, Kenya’s hunger level is classified as serious, and about 27.8 per cent of the population suffers from inadequate access to food. 

This situation has profound real estate implications. Large tracts of arable land are being repurposed for feed crops or sold off to developers for housing and industrial estates.

Land speculation around growing urban areas has further reduced the land available for farming. 

In order for the livestock sector in Kenya to sustain the challenges faced and ensure livelihoods and food security for the existing 54 million people in the country, there needs to be a shift in focus towards more sustainable and cost-effective feeding options, such as perennial fodder farming. 

According to the CEO of Moofodder Supermarket Githaiga Kihara, perennial forage crops like Brachiaria, Panchong 1 super napier, red napier (Australian Purple), dwarf napier (Indonesian Smart Napier), Juncao (Chinese napier grass), and Trichantera can offer several advantages over annual crops. 

“These perennial forages require less fuel, labour, and input costs since they don’t need to be replanted every year. Additionally, their deep root systems help prevent soil erosion and improve water absorption into the soil,” he said. 

Perennial fodder is also increasingly viewed as a real estate investment strategy. Landowners, including cooperatives and institutional investors, are buying idle land to convert into perennial fodder farms, leasing out portions to livestock farmers or supplying feed to dairy cooperatives.  

In regions such as Nyeri, Nyandarua, Meru, and Uasin Gishu, fodder farming has become a profitable use of medium-acreage land, rivalling maize and wheat production. 

“Perennial forages are typically higher in crude protein content, which is essential for supporting animal growth, milk production, and overall health. Additionally, perennial biomass yields tend to be greater over the growing season compared to annuals, allowing for more consistent and abundant feed supplies,” Githaiga added. 

He further explained that perennial fodder crops can be strategically harvested and stored to ensure a reliable supply of livestock feed, even during the dry season when forage may be scarce. 

“Properly curing and storing the harvested fodder, whether as baled hay or ensiled in airtight bunkers or silos, allows farmers to build up sufficient reserves to carry their herds through periods of limited fresh forage availability,” he said. 

With Kenya’s urban centres expanding, land values in rural areas have risen steadily. A 2024 HassConsult Land Price Index report showed that agricultural land in Kiambu, Nyeri, and Nakuru counties had appreciated by between six and 10 per cent annually over the past five years, largely due to demand from investors eyeing agribusiness opportunities. 

Perennial fodder farming fits neatly into this trend. By converting idle or underutilised plots into fodder farms, landowners can generate rental income, boost land value, and participate in the growing livestock economy. 

In Laikipia, for instance, large ranches have started leasing sections of land to cooperatives for perennial fodder production.

Similarly, smaller landowners in Central Kenya are entering lease agreements with dairy farmers, who guarantee steady monthly payments in exchange for exclusive fodder cultivation rights. 

The Kenyan government has begun to recognise fodder farming as a critical part of both food security and land-use planning.

In 2024, the Agriculture Ministry launched a pilot programme to encourage farmers in arid and semi-arid lands (ASALs) such as Kajiado, Turkana, and Isiolo to plant drought-resistant perennial fodder. 

At the same time, county governments are exploring zoning laws that protect agricultural land from unchecked urban development.

This signals a shift in how real estate policy will evolve: safeguarding farmland for sustainable use, while still allowing controlled urban growth. 

As Kenya grapples with a “serious” hunger level, ranking 90th out of 125 countries on the 2023 Global Hunger Index, livestock farmers in the country are finding relief through a shift to perennial fodder farming.

This sustainable and cost-effective feeding option stands in contrast to the inefficient practice of using grain and other human-edible foods to feed livestock—a method that further reduces the global food supply.