Ol Joro Orok

Dairy Research Centre (DRC) Ol Joro Orok

Overview of the Centre (About us):

KALRO Dairy Research Centre (DRC) Ol Joro Orok is a centre of the Dairy Research Institute (DRI). The main activities in the centre includes livestock production (dairy cattle and mutton sheep) for research and sale to farmers to improve their genetic potential. Other activities include multiplication of pastures and fodder material germ plasm and seed production of high-altitude composite (HAC) maize seed and potato seed.

The centre has also taken up upscaling of adaptive research technologies and collaborative research work with other institutions to test their technologies in the cold highlands. The centre has additionally focused on commercialization of its resources with the view of generating revenue to support research and maintenance. These ventures include milk value addition, bottling of water, seed multiplication, aquaculture, apiculture among other emerging agri-entreprises.

KALRO Dairy Research Centre Ol Joro Orok is located 9km from Nyahururu town along the Nairobi-Nyahururu Highway.

Specific enterprises at KALRO DRC Ol joro orok include;

  • Dairy production and management (Friesians, Ayrshires and crosses)
  • Sheep production and management
  • Crops production and management (Potato seed, Maize seed, Horticulture etc.)
  • Pastures and fodder germplasm production and management
  • Aquaculture production and management
  • Apiculture production and management
  • Milk value addition
  • Water processing
  • Farm management
  • Agribusiness, Outreach, sales and marketing

 Centre Structure

The centre is headed by a Centre Director and sections manned by section heads. |There are also units under sections managed by unit managers who report to the section head.

Research Areas

  1. Dairy
  • Dairy feed and feeding
  • Animal breeding
  • Animal health
  • Dairy agribusiness
  1. Crops, Pastures and Fodder
  • Testing protein content in a variety of pastures and fodder e.g. super napier
  • Maize forage (comparing hybrid and high altitude composite (HAC) growth performance)
  • Bracharia splits: testing sprouting of cuttings
  1. Aquaculture and Apiculture
  • Testing nutritive value and biomass under different forms of fertilizer including: vermicast, frass, DAP and vermicompost
  1. Sheep Production
  • Sheep feed and feeding
  • Sheep breeding
  • Sheep health
  • Sheep agribusiness

Core Functions

  1. Research and Development:
  2. Capacity Building:
  3. Policy Support:

Achievements and Impact

The Research Institute has made significant contributions to Kenya’s agricultural sector, including:

  1. Production and Sale of Certified Potato Seed to the Farming Community
  2. 2. Production of High Value Fodder Germplasm Material
  3. 3. Value Addition, Sale and Training on a Variety of Dairy Products E.G Yoghurt/ Mala.
  4. Production and Sale of Breeding Rams and Hoggets to Increase the Genetic Potential among Farmers.
  5. Use of beneficial insects (Black soldier fly) as a livestock feed ingredient.
  6. Sale of in-calf heifers
  7. Food security -sale of milk and cull animals

Services Offered

  • Training of Individual Farmers, Farmer groups and Student parties visiting the Centre

Partnerships and Collaborations

The centre collaborates with various national and international organizations, including:

  • Kenya Plant Health Inspectorate Services (KEPHIS)
  • National Potato Council of Kenya (NPCK)
  • Kenya studbook
  • Livestock recording centre
  • County veterinary services
  • ICIPE
  • KAGRC
  • Other KALRO centres

Future Direction include;

  1. Enhanced Research: Focusing on cutting-edge research to address emerging agricultural challenges.
  2. Digital Agriculture: Leveraging digital technologies for precision farming and data-driven decision-making.
  3. Sustainable Practices: Promoting sustainable agricultural practices to ensure long-term productivity.
  4. Youth and Women Empowerment: Engaging youth and women in agricultural research and development activities etc

Contact Information

The Centre Director,
KALRO Ol joro orok
Phone:0710854357
Email: kalro.oljororok@kalro.org               kalrooljk@gmail.com
Web: www.kalro.org