By Kamundia Muriithi
Coffee farmers in the County have inched closer to milling and marketing their produce together following the arrival of Sh72million machinery at a new mill’s premises in Kavutiri area.
The milling machinery with a capacity of 2.8 tonnes per hour was procured from Brazil and was financed through a loan from Commodities Fund advanced to some 21 co-operative societies in the county.
The idea of a County Mill was the initiative of Murue Co-operative Society long before the County Government was constituted but other coffee Co-operatives were incorporated bringing membership to 110,000 farmers.
Hundreds of farmers turned up to receive the historic consignment and were joined by County Secretary Raymond Kinyua, Agriculture Chief Officer Francis Kathuri, County Commissioner of Co-operatives David Muriuki and the Mill Chairman David Maruku.
Kinyua said the County Government had allocated Sh15million to get a stake into the mill where Sh10million was used in constructing buildings while Sh5million would be used in building warehouses. The entire cost of setting up the mill is projected at Sh125million.
“The mill is a big milestone towards improving coffee farming in the county and in the region. We are inviting private millers and other co-operative societies which have not joined in so that we can work together and benefit from economies of scale,” said Kinyua.
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