Senators want permanent lifting of ban on nuts export
Kirinyaga Senator James Murango. He said senators want the draconian section 43 of the Agriculture and Food Authority Act 2013, which restricts local farmers from exporting nuts, amended.
Senators are pushing for the permanent lifting of a ban on the exportation of raw nuts, saying it has resulted in huge losses for local farmers since it came into force in 2015.
The push comes after Trade Cabinet Secretary Moses Kuria temporarily lifted the ban on raw macadamia nut exports.
Kirinyaga Senator James Murango welcomed the one-year reprieve, saying it should be made permanent and extended to cover cashew nuts, bixa and pyrethrum.
“I have been pushing for the lifting of the ban and now CS Kuria has temporarily lifted it. The law, as it is, is discriminatory and unconstitutional as it weakens the formation of cooperatives to help farmers aggregate the nuts for export,” said Mr Murango.
He said they were keen to amend the “draconian” Section 43 of the Agriculture and Food Authority Act 2013, which restricts local farmers from exporting the nuts except with the written authority of the Agriculture cabinet secretary.
Mr Murango argued that the ban had made it easy for cartels to lower the prices by refusing to buy from the farmers, thus flooding the market with cheap nuts.
The regulation, he said, was aimed at empowering local processors, creating jobs and improving earnings for farmers.
However, the opposite happened, prompting farmers to uproot their macadamia trees rather than sell the nuts at throwaway prices.
He claimed the law had been pushed by cartels that were smuggling the nuts to Tanzania, which exports more macadamia than Kenya despite not having many farmers.
The Senate Agriculture Committee chairperson said it was wrong for five companies to dominate the local market, with value-added macadamia going for Sh3,600 a kilo while farmers receive at most Sh30 a kilo.
“Four years ago, the nuts used to go for Sh180 a kilo, when the Chinese were buying them but now they go for between Sh20 and Sh30 a kilo,” said the senator.
Narok Senator Ledama Olekina said the legislation was made to kill the economy and promote cartels and brokers.
“Why should we set aside a particular crop to benefit a cabal? Bring that piece of legislation, passed by a few cartels in 2009, so that we amend it,” he said.
“Kenya is the second largest producer of macadamia in Africa and third in the world after Australia and South Africa and so there is no way local farmers should not be dancing all the way to the bank,” he added.
Senator Murango said the Agriculture and Food Amendment Bill 2023 was set for public participation before being brought to the House.
The Bill seeks to repeal section 43 of the AFA Act 2013 that prohibits export of raw Macadamia.
“We are working on a law that will ensure that no minister will ever again have powers to ban any export,” he added.
According to the Crops (Nuts and Oil Crops) Regulations 2020, importers and exporters must be a body corporate registered in Kenya with a valid tax compliance certificate. Each consignment exported or imported is required to be accompanied by an import permit or certificate.
Makueni Senator Dan Maanzo said the push to repeal the law is to allow farmers to sell directly to the global market.
Nominated Senator Catherine Mumma asked the Agriculture committee to consider radical solutions, including setting up teams to come up with minimum prices for farmers for different crops in the country.
In Kenya, macadamia is farmed in Embu, Meru, Machakos, Kirinyaga, Kiambu, Taita-Taveta, Tharaka Nithi, Baringo, Murang’a, Nyeri, Uasin Gishu, Elgeyo Marakwet, Bungoma, Kakamega and Nandi counties.
