Cash-strapped pyrethrum board suspends operations

“The delay has subjected us to financial difficulties, resulting in suspension of key tasks including processing of flowers,” said PBK managing director Isaac Mulagholi.

He said the board has already spent the Sh100 million that was allocated by the government earlier and needs additional cash to pay farmers for delivery of flowers and to purchase solvents and service machinery for smooth operations.

“Farmers are hoarding pyrethrum flowers because we have no money to pay them while we are currently unable to pay salaries,” he said.

Inadequate financial allocation in previous budgets has made it difficult for the board to service loans which have risen over the years .
The board had plans to increase payments to farmers to Sh100 per kilogramme and to renovate factories.

Production

Pyrethrum farmers are free to sell their produce to any buyer after President Kibaki assented to the Bill that exposes PBK to competition this year.

The law also scrapped the restriction in the 1964 Act that barred farmers and businessmen from delivering or dealing with pyrethrum or its products, including imports into the East African region without the board’s approval.

Closure of the board comes at a time when pyrethrum production in Rift Valley had doubled following a decision by the government to overhaul the board’s management.

Acreage under cultivation of the crop increased from 1,911.55 hectares to 2,907.65 hectares while production improved from 1,072.622 tonnes to 2,070.19 tonnes in the past one year.

Kenya controls 52 per cent of America and Canadian, 40 per cent of the European, six per cent of Australia and Asia and two per cent of African natural insecticides market.

Mr Mulagholi said there was high demand for the crop in world markets even as farmers in the North Rift uprooted the crop and shifted to horticulture and dairy farming.