US food distributor Cargill seeks warehouse receipt operator permit

American global food corporation Cargill has applied to be certified as a warehouse receipt operator, becoming the first foreign multinational to put in the request after Parliament passed the Warehouse Receipt System (WRS) Act, which provides the legal and regulatory framework backing the WRS.

On Tuesday, WRSC chairperson Jane Ngige revealed Cargill’s intent to Business Daily on the sidelines of the signing of an agreement between the International Finance Corporation (IFC) and the Trade Ministry for a $2.3 million (Sh304.8 million) funding scheme to mobilise private sector investment in the Warehouse Receipt System (WRS).

IFC announced the financial support in February to offer technical advisory services to WRSC, sparking speculations the World Bank-linked institution’s involvement in mobilising investment would see a surge in the number of foreign firms expressing interest in setting up new warehouses in the country.

“Since the IFC announcement, we have seen a lot of interest coming up, especially from India. Cargill is one of the firms whose application is being processed,” said Ms Ngige.

“But the interest is not just from foreign firms, even locally we’ve seen a hike and we’ve lined up a number of firms for certification.”

Founded in 1865 and boasting sales of $165 billion (Sh21.9 trillion) as of the year ended May 2022, Cargill is an agribusiness firm that connects producers of grains and oilseeds to consumers through trading, processing and distribution.

Kenya formally launched its WRS in January 2022, two-and-a-half years after Parliament passed the law.

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