Cane farmers have told Sugar millers that they won’t accept less than KSh6050 per tonne for cane delivered to the factories for milling.
The farmers declared that the payment per ton as from this month (February) will only be reviewed upwards and not downwards as has been the trend for many years.
The sentiments were contained in a resolution that the cane growers from Western Kenya reached, during a heated consultative forum held at Kisumu Sarova hotel to discuss the industry’s recurring historical problems.
The meeting was convened by Connelly Serem who is the chairperson of the Agriculture Food Authority (AFA) and was attended by more than 200 farmers from the entire sugar belt region.
AFA is a State Corporation in the Ministry of Agriculture, Livestock, Fisheries and Cooperatives, with a primary role to regulate, develop and promote scheduled crops value chains for increased economic growth in Kenya.
AFA replaced these institutions: Kenya Sugar Board, Kenya Coconut Development Authority, Coffee Board of Kenya, Cotton Development Authority, Horticultural Crops Development Authority, Kenya Sisal Board, Pyrethrum Board of Kenya and the Tea Board of Kenya as the umbrella body.
Sugar Directorate boss Jude Chesire said that they had unanimously agreed to cap the cane prices per ton at the current KSh6050.
“But we will convene Cane Pricing Committee (CPC) meetings each month to review the prices based on the sugar market sales trends,’’ explained Chesire
However, farmers, through The Kenya National Federation of Sugarcane Farmers (KNFSF) declared that cane prices will only be reviewed upwards and not downwards again.
The federation secretary general Killion Osur and Chairman Ezra Okoth, told the millers, “We want cane farmers to earn what is commensurate with their sweat. We will not allow excuses that there is excess supply of sugar in the local markets, no.’’
They challenged the Government to curb cheap dumping of sugar into the local markets, to avoid using saturated market analysis to lower cane prices in the country.
CPC held a meeting in January and fixed the new cane price to Sh6,050, but farmers claim even this is too little and want KSh10,000 per ton.
In what is likely to ruffle feathers in the sugar industry especially among millers but stir happiness among cane growers, the farmers sent the industry regulator back to the drawing board and shivers down the miller’s spine.
KNFSF Secretary General Killion Osur and Chairman Ezra Okoth, told millers that they will disclosed that there is no cane as most millers failed to nurture and support farmers to develop the crop.
Wasechere said they are not impressed by the recent historical hike of sugarcane buying prices from a low of KShSh5,200 to KSh6,050 per tonne by top millers, saying they need more pay hikes.
West Kenya Sugar, the manufacturers of Kabras Sugar, has been paying farmers KSh5,500 per ton, the highest in the country’s history, as their competitors Mumias Sugar Company and Butali give KSh5,250 and KSh5,200 respectively.
By Fredrick Odiero
