Enterprise

Macadamia farmers decry corona driven exploitation

muchemi

Peter Muchemi at his macadamia farm in Kangaita, Nyeri County. PHOTO | JOSEPH KANYI

Macadamia farmers are accusing nut processors of exploiting the coronavirus pandemic to collude with brokers who are mopping up the commodity at throw away prices.

The processors suspended buying of the commodity in April, citing uncertainty brought about by shutting down of industries in various parts of the world to stop spread of the Covid-19 pandemic.

Farm gate prices have plummeted from a high of Sh200 last year to Sh50 currently with farmers saying brokers were delivering the produce to processors.

Mr Joshua Muriira, Meru Macadamia Farmers Association chairman, said processors had closed their buying centres but accused them of continuing to receive nuts from brokers.

“We have been informed the processors are getting the produce from brokers despite closing their buying centres. This is the kind of exploitation we experienced about five years ago before Chinese buyers came into the market, which saw a rise in the prices,” he said.

However, Nuts Processors Association of Kenya executive officer Charles Muigai dismissed the farmers’ claims, and maintained that they were not buying nuts from brokers.

“It is unfair for the farmers to accuse us of colluding with brokers yet we have maintained good prices when the industry was doing well. The sector has seriously been affected by the coronavirus pandemic with industries operating at below 30 percent (capacity),” he said.

“Nobody is buying the product in Europe, the US and China where we export most of the nuts,” Mr Muigai said, adding that those buying the commodity would lose their money since this year’s crop was likely to overlap to next year’s.

“At the moment the situation is bad and projections are that nuts will be carried over to next year with devastating effects on the industry,” he said yesterday in a phone interview.

The unpredictability of the sector has led to some farmers to push for review of the law saying export of the commodity in its raw form would save them from massive losses.