Onset of rains floods market with poor quality farm inputs

• Greedy traders take advantage of season to sell counterfeit materials to farmers

With the beginning of the much-anticipated rainfall, two groups of individuals are each out to make a killing.

On one side is the farmer whose fortunes dried out with the harsh weather conditions but who now wants to recoup his losses.

To do this the grower must buy a number of farm inputs for his venture.

But on the other hand, are producers of counterfeits who are counting on gullible farmers to also rake in huge amounts.

Though it is neither a Kenyan only problem nor unique to agribusiness, its impact is far reaching as agriculture has an overall 53 per cent contribution to the country’s economy in Gross Domestic Product, employment and foreign exchange.

Counterfeit seeds, chemicals and fertilisers and limited mechanisation of farms, fragmented markets and poor infrastructure are greatly to blame for the poor performance of the agricultural sector.

Existing laws

According to Assistant Minister for Agriculture Gideon Ndambuki, the problem can be greatly attributed to existing laws that do not clearly spell out the penalties for those caught imitating or distributing fake farm products.

“Counterfeit farm inputs in Kenya have been known to exist for the longest time. Walk into any agro-chemical shop in search of a certain seed or farm input, if the price is too high, the shop owner will tell you of yet another option that works just the same but comes cheaper than the one requested.”

“The shop owner will be quick to tell you how there is no difference as the seeds are the same; just the manufacturing companies are different,” he says. Despite these dealers being out in the open, nothing much has been done.

Strong support

However, Mr Ndambuki says this will soon change with the expected passing of the Anti-counterfeit Bill that is still in Parliament. He said his ministry strongly supports it.

“We, however, strongly believe and are grateful with the measurements that the government has put in to place an Anti-counterfeit Bill that will enable the agribusiness sector to continue to drive the economy,” he said.

The Assistant minister spoke on the sidelines of an event organised by agro-products manufacturer, Farmchem, to unveil new packaging for their products in an attempt to protect its turf.

During the event the company’s managing director Charles Mulinge said counterfeiting of farm inputs such as seeds and chemicals has continuously exposed farmers to low yields and crop failure leading to food insecurity.

“The agribusiness community has been grappling with serious counterfeiting problems since most of the products or seedlings are packaged in an easy to copy package, making it harder for farmers to get quality assurance,” he said.

The company said it had invested a lot in the new packaging with over Sh20 million going to educating farmers on the importance of following agronomic practices and using only Kenya Plant Health Inspectorate Service approved farm inputs to get better returns.

These are some of the attempts by industry players to help farmers distinguish the genuine from counterfeit products and save themselves from losses.

World trade

According to a study on Counterfeiting Intelligence Bureau by the International Chamber of Commerce counterfeit goods make up 5 to 7 per cent of world trade though these figures cannot be substantiated.

It is particularly a plague in Africa with governments being urged to consider increasing penalties against the distribution and selling of counterfeits.

Mr Josephat Njoroge, East Africa Seed Company sales and marketing manager, says current penalties are too insignificant with those caught walking away with Sh2,000 fine or six months imprisonment despite making millions worth of fake products.

The company is now calling for stiffer penalties for those nabbed. Mr Njoroge says a farmer who buys fake maize seeds is likely to suffer a decline in production.

He says the grower will harvest between 10 to 20 bags per acre down from a high of 35 and 45.

“Owing to their fast selling nature and demand in high quantities, vegetable seeds especially cabbage and onions are also a lucrative target for counterfeiters, mostly in the Rift Valley, Western and Nyanza provinces,” he says.

Increase efforts

The problem has rapidly grown in the past two to three years from an average 2 per cent fake seeds in the market to higher numbers that are yet to be quantified.

Pest Control Products board CEO Gladys Maina says as much as organisations have to increase their efforts in curbing the crisis, farmers must also take responsibility for their actions and decisions.

“Why should you agree to purchase a pesticide or fungicide at half or even a quarter price that the product is known to go for and expect to have the same results,” she poses.

Ms Maina says it is first the responsibility of the buyer to check the products as the packaging is sometimes tampered with as the fake manufacturers tries to sell their chemicals using other producers’ packets.

Look real

But with counterfeiters increasing their efforts to make their products look as real as possible, she advocates for a regular packaging review measure for agri-products manufacturers.

The PCPB says every part of the country and every product is exposed to fake products, which are mainly produced within the country posing great danger to users and the environment.

Besides enacting severe penalties for criminals, she also called upon the government to subsidise the prices of agricultural inputs which most farmers find too costly, leaving a gap for counterfeiters to fill with cheap products.