Mumias Sugar shut indefinitely after row over cane delivery
A tractor transports sugarcane to Mumias Sugar Company July 4, 2013. The company has closed shop indefinitely for lack of sugarcane after a boycott by transporters contracted to deliver. Photo/FILE
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On Friday, the firm’s marketing and Communication director Ms Margaret Makhungu said the factory was forced to suspend operations since there was no cane to crush.
Ms Makhungu indicated that the miller had suspended cane harvesting in the expansive Mumias Sugar zone until things return to normal.
Mumias Sugar Company has closed shop indefinitely for lack of sugarcane after a boycott by transporters contracted to deliver.
Operations at the miller have been on-off since last week when the striking cane transporters downed their tools.
The transporters had vowed to paralyse operations even further, arguing that the miller was plotting to kick them out business by contracting more cane transporting firms.
On Friday, the firm’s marketing and Communication director Ms Margaret Makhungu said the factory was forced to suspend operations since there was no cane to crush.
“We have not received cane for a week now yet striking transporters will not listen to anything despite a series of meetings we have held with them over issues surrounding new terms of engagement between the two parties,” she explained.
Ms Makhungu indicated that the miller had suspended cane harvesting in the expansive Mumias Sugar zone until things return to normal.
“We do not want to see a situation where harvested crop go to waste on farms at the expense of both the growers and the miller.”
She said the transporters felt aggrieved following the company’s decision to place adverts in local dailies that not only invited new players on board but indicated a possible review of current engagement terms with contracted transporters.
“We have no intention of ending their contracts but give farmers who have the capacity to transport sugarcane an opportunity to do so and also ensure efficiency in transportation of the raw material,” Ms Makhungu said.
She noted that the miller’s current cane haulage capacity was lagging “since we do not have enough fleet of trailers to ferry the raw material that is adequate to sustain smooth running and operations at the factory.
Besides, Ms Makhungu argued that reviewing terms of engagement would see famers venture in transport activities and earn extra money on top of the income from their crop.
“The whole approach is geared towards giving farmers an upper hand in activities involving sugarcane farming and sugar processing. We also wish to review service delivery charter for improved and quality service delivery and all this has nothing to do with valid old contracts,” she noted.
Reacting to the development, Kenya Sugar Board director representing Mumias/Busia Billy Wanjala urged the firm’s management to look for a lasting solution into the problem.
“The factory closure will impact negatively to sugarcane farmers especially those whose crop is due,” he said.
Mr Wanjala said such a move could only worsen things for Mumias Sugar Company, which he argued has been struggling to recover from a financial crisis for a long time.
“Players must be ready to engage and have this matter resolved amicably without causing trouble in the sugar sector.”
Mumias Sugar had its managing director Peter Kebati sacked a couple of weeks ago in connection with a sugar importation scandal.
