The Agriculture and Food Authority board has advertised the position of director general.
The board chaired by Cornelly Serem is seeking to replace the outgoing Director General Willis Audi.
Audi was in May this year appointed to the position at the helm of the food regulator by the board following the exit of Beatrice Nyamwamu.
Nyamwamu was an agricultural resource and policy expert and one of the few women serving in the chief executive role at State corporations in the country.
She had become the second acting director-general to exit AFA in two years.
Current Crops Principal Secretary Kello Harsama, who served as Nyamwamu's predecessor, resigned in February 2022.
He exited to contest for the Marsabit county governor’s seat in the August 9, 2022, general elections.
Harsama, having lost in his bid for governor was appointed as PS in President William Ruto's administration.
Audi had served as the acting director of the Horticulture Crops Directorate before his elevation in May this year.
He was formerly at the Sugar Directorate.
Agriculture Cabinet Secretary Mithika Linturi, under whose docket the agency falls, had recently stated that he wanted to revamp AFA.
The recruitment of a substantive director general is seen as part of his plans to reposition the agency as a formidable player for the country's food security.
There were initial reports that a section of the board members had wanted to extend Audi's term, a move that triggered sharp cracks.
State House recently wrote a memo directing all the Cabinet secretaries and principal secretaries to ensure State corporations under their ministries are guided by the Mwongozo code of governance for State corporations.
Mwongozo is a rule book providing for how state corporations are run.
The May changes which also affected more directorates followed an outcry associated with the exportation of immature avocados.
This is after a Kenyan living abroad complained on social media about the poor quality of Kenyan avocados being sold in the international market.
The government took immediate action and immediately suspended licenses for two firms due to the claims that they had exported immature avocados.
AFA, established in 2013 through a merger of several crop boards, had operated without a board until this year when Serem was appointed.
Since its establishment, AFA has stepped up efforts to enforce rules for the production, storage, transportation and packaging of produce to reduce post-harvest losses and ensure compliance with export market standards.