Firm seeks change in law on tea leaf hawking
What you need to know:
Njeru Industries Limited calls for clear law on how excess green leaf should be absorbed by processors.
There are 68 factories owned by more than 500,000 small scale farmers across the country with their teas marketed by the KTDA.
However, there has been controversy pitting some farmers against KTDA with some of them demanding to break away from the agency.
A private tea processor in Meru County wants rules on hawking of tea changed, terming them discriminatory and unconstitutional.
Njeru Industries Limited has opposed the rules that govern hawking of tea, saying they are meant to stifle competition and “criminalise” private investment. The firm packages orthodox teas under the brand name Kappa Chai.
In what is likely to escalate controversy over access of raw materials by processors, the firm wants the Agriculture and Food Authority’s (AFA) Tea Directorate to come up with a clear law on how excess green leaf should be absorbed by processors.
PARLIAMENT
There are 68 factories owned by more than 500,000 small scale farmers across the country with their teas marketed by the Kenya Tea Development Agency (KTDA), but a number of private factories also process tea.
However, there has been controversy pitting some farmers against KTDA with some of them demanding to break away from the agency. Gem MP Elisha Odhiambo has also tabled a Bill in Parliament which seeks to create the Kenya Tea Development Authority and abolish the KTDA.
Paul Njeru, Njeru Industries managing director, said the Crops Act 2013 is clear on how farmers are expected to deliver their green leaf.
NEGATIVE
“Every smallholder grower, for purposes of accessing economies of scale, shall have the freedom to register with the tea factory to which the person delivers green leaf, by supplying such particulars as the authority, by regulations, prescribe,” says section 14 (b) of the Act.
According to Mr Njeru, the rules on hawking were intended to create a negative perception of private tea processing. “The regulator should prioritise reforms that give rise to a competitive ecosystem that will encourage growers to expand their tea farms and give confidence to investors,” said Mr Njeru in a letter to head of Tea Directorate, Anthony Muriithi.
According to a survey commissioned by the Tea Directorate last year, Meru region has excess green tea production of 14 million kilos, while Murang’a has 15 million kilos. It recommends enhanced processing capacities in Tharaka-Nithi, Embu, Nyeri, Kiambu, Kericho and Kirinyaga counties.
