Kirinyaga leaders from tea growing zones have raised concerns following increased illegal hawking of the crop.
The leaders are now demanding an explanation from the Tea Board of Kenya on the status of the operating licenses of individuals acting in private capacity who have been buying tea from registered farmers.
The small-scale farmers, they say, are registered to sell their leaf to the county factories under the KTDA Zone V, but not to individuals who apparently have been buying the produce at a throwaway price.
Led by Kirinyaga Central MP Gachoki Gitari, the leaders decried that Zone V factories are losing over a million kilograms of leaf to the illegal tea processors who are buying the produce for as low as of between Sh15 to Sh25 per kilo of fresh leaf.
Gitari wondered why the individuals have repeatedly and without a care in the world been carrying out the notorious business despite several warnings from the Zone V directors.
He now wants the Tea Board of Kenya, which is mandated to issue licenses to tea processors, to shed light on the status of the licenses issued to the individuals and why they are illegally buying tea from registered farmers mandated to only sell their produce to Zone V factories.
Additionally, the legislator called on the county commissioner and the National Police Service to move with speed and bring to book all the people involved in the illegal hawking.
Speaking on Tuesday in Kimunye, Gichugu constituency, Gachoki cautioned that all Kirinyaga leaders are solidly rallying behind the directors in calling for a stop to the illegal operations.
“We have information that one of the notorious buyers was recently arrested in Gichugu and released unconditionally. The mystery however is how the individual continues operating like he is above the law,” the MP said.
The legislator noted that the practice risks watering down all the gains made to resuscitate the tea subsector.
Moreover, he decried that the hawking could encourage tea theft over increased demand for Kirinyaga tea due to its high quality and taste.
“Kirinyaga is ranked to have one of the best teas in the word in terms of quality and taste. It is regrettable that this illegality is taking place and should we allow it to continue, there will be increased cases of tea theft in the county,” he said
“Statistics reveal that last season, Thumaita tea factory, which is one of the factories under Zone V, lost about a million kilograms of tea leaves to an individual tea processor."
He further advised farmers to refrain from being lured into selling their leaf at a meagre price, saying that is tantamount to exploitation as the individual processor is making a killing with their tea at the expense of their hard work.
“Quick money is not always rewarding. Let us sell our tea within the confines of our laws because your produce fetches a better price if managed and paid by KTDA. Through the pay and the bonuses you earn, you are able to adequately meet your families’ needs,” he said.
His sentiments were echoed by his Gichugu counterpart Gichimu Githinji who advised farmers to keep off tea brokers who only want to exploit them and deny them an opportunity to thrive through their ventures.
“I want to urge farmers to be contended with what they earn per month through the sale of their produce to their respective factories. The brokers are here to exploit you by way of buying your leaf at a cheap price and thereafter sell the produce at an exorbitant price therefore leaving you hopeless,” he cautioned.
Gichimu said the Tea Act bans tea hawking, and vowed to partner with other local leaders to institute charges against the perpetrators as encouraging such an illegality could risk spelling doom to the tea subsector.
Michael Ndui, a local farmer, called for increased security of their tea bushes saying the practice could lead to more farmers losing.
He said some of the vehicles belonging to the suspected brokers have been spotted by locals in various parts of the county buying green leaf from farmers.
He added that many farmers are now sacrificing their sleep in order to guard their tea bushes at night as the ongoing operations could trigger tea theft.