State asked to revoke millers' licences to reduce cane poaching

Sugar millers in western Kenya have asked the national government to revoke the licences of companies lacking cane.

They said on Tuesday that this would help reduce poaching, which has been on the rise, leading to the near-collapse of the industry.

The millers said the declining fortunes of the industry was due to licensing of firms that do not have raw materials.

Speaking to the Nation on the phone, outgoing Mumias Sugar Board chairman Dan Ameyo, Chemelil managing director Charles Owele and his Sony counterpart Jane Pamela said most millers were operating without cane.

“The mills should be closed down because they are the ones causing problems in the industry,” said Mr Ameyo.

He said raw materials are the backbone of the industry. He added that factories should be licensed only if they have enough cane to crush.

“You cannot be given a licence to benefit from cane belonging to those who have invested in the crop,” said Mr Ameyo.

“Mumias Sugar Company spends Sh3 billion in cane development. Then some factories poach the cane by enticing farmers with early payment. This needs to stop unless we are out to kill the industry,” he added.

Ms Pamela said the shortage of cane was affecting all the sugar factories.

LICENCES REVOKED

“How do you put up a factory and get licensed without knowing where you will get your raw materials? We want private companies that have erected weighbridges everywhere to tell us when they developed the cane,” said Ms Pamela on the phone.

She added that the weighbridges should be brought down and the licences revoked to save the sector.

The Sony boss said the government should be worried since the industry is performing poorly.

State-owned factories have had a tradition of helping farmers develop cane. They help in planting, weeding and harvesting.

“Why someone who doesn’t have raw materials is given a licence to put up a factory is baffling. The problem starts with the government,” said Mr Owele.
He added that once contracted farmers take their cane elsewhere, the factory incurs huge losses.

Companies that are most affected by poaching are Chemelil, Sony and Mumias.

Mr Francis Wangara, a shareholder with Mumias Sugar, said millers should come up with cane development programmes.

“Each miller needs to prove that it has enough raw materials to produce sugar before being licensed,” said Mr Wangara, who is also the secretary-general of the Kenya Union of Sugar Plantation Workers.