KTDA chairman David Ichoho said the factories’ board of directors had started meeting this week to discuss the company’s finances between July and December.
Some factories had declared a mini-bonus last month, prompting KTDA to issue a public statement urging farmers to ignore the announcement, which it termed as “unverified.”
KTDA last year paid a mini-bonus of between Sh2 and Sh5 per kilogramme, according individual to factory declarations.
Farmers attached to Kenya Tea Development Agency (KTDA) will get their mini-bonus in the first week of March.
KTDA chairman David Ichoho said the factories’ board of directors had started meeting this week to discuss the company’s finances between July and December in what will determine the amount to be paid to each farmer
Some factories had declared a mini-bonus last month, prompting KTDA to issue a public statement urging farmers to ignore the announcement, which it termed as “unverified.”
The amount of money that farmers will earn is to be announced at the end of this month.
KTDA last year paid a mini-bonus of between Sh2 and Sh5 per kilogramme, according individual to factory declarations.
“The factories are now meeting to discuss the mini-bonus and we expect to release it to farmers by the first week of March,” said Mr Ichoho.
This will be the first time that growers would receive the money early compared to other years. For instance, in 2021, the mini-bonus was paid in July.
The chairman said the money will help growers to maintain their tea bushes as well as meet other domestic needs.
Mr Ichoho said the mini-bonus will be paid together with the February monthly growers’ payment.
The KTDA normally pays farmers between Sh19 and Sh21 per kilo each month, depending on the region with the balance paid at the end of financial year as the main bonus.
Factories in the East of Rift, which comprises Nyeri, Murangá, Kiambu, Kirinyaga, Embu, and Meru normally receive high bonus compared with their counterparts in the West of Rift.
The payouts are usually based on quality, cost of production that factories incur and loans that farmers are servicing also have an impact on the earnings.
The chairperson of the Tea Prices Stabilisation Committee Irungu Nyakera had early this month stated that farmers ought to get Sh10 for mini-bonus payment, up from Sh5 that last year.
The payment of bonus has always been controversial with factories, especially those on the West of Rift claiming of being short-changed by the KTDA management.
The earnings in this region, which include Kericho, Bomet, Trans Nzoia, and Vihiga have always been lower compared with those in the East of Rift.
