NAIROBI, Kenya – Livestock owners in Kenya will soon be required to present identification for their animals before selling them at slaughterhouses as the government launches a comprehensive livestock identification and traceability system.
The initiative, led by the Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock Development through the State Department of Livestock, aims to enhance food safety, improve trade prospects, and combat livestock theft.
Principal Secretary Jonathan Mueke revealed that the ministry has been working on the system for two decades but faced numerous implementation hurdles.
However, with global markets increasingly demanding traceability of food products, the urgency to establish a robust tracking mechanism has intensified.
“We are developing a system called Anitrack that will register our animals, track their breed, productivity (such as milk or egg production), and their geographical origins,” Mueke said. “This will allow us to prove traceability of livestock products, all the way from the farm to the market.”
PS Jonathan Mueke said the ministry has been working on the system for the past 20 years. the-star.co.ke/news/star-farm…
Each animal registered in the system will be fitted with a GPS-enabled air tag, making it easier to track and recover stolen livestock.
Christopher Wanga, the director of livestock policy, research, and regulations at the ministry, said this technology will serve as a deterrent to cattle theft.
“People steal livestock to sell them. With this system, stolen animals will be easily identifiable, making them much less attractive to thieves,” Wanga explained.
The system will also streamline the transfer of ownership during sales, linking each animal to its rightful owner.
While the system is not mandatory, Wanga encouraged farmers to adopt it, noting its advantages in securing their investment and meeting market requirements.
“It’s not compulsory, but it’s a smart practice for anyone raising livestock as a business,” he said.
The ministry plans to engage the public and scale up animal registration efforts to ensure broad adoption of the system.
The Livestock Master Plan, currently under development, includes this identification system as a cornerstone of its strategy to modernize the sector.
