Coffee farmers in frantic bid to save cooperative from auction

Coffee farmers sort out coffee berries in Nyeri. [File, Standard]

Coffee farmers in Manyatta constituency have moved to court to halt the impending auction of their cooperative, which is facing a financial crisis due to a Sh60 million loan.

The Gakundu Coffee Cooperative Society, which represents thousands of farmers, has filed a petition in court seeking to prevent the sale of its assets over unpaid debts.

In 2014, the cooperative secured a loan of Sh50 million from the Commodity Fund. However, due to financial difficulties, the debt has now ballooned by an additional Sh10 million in accrued interest.

Robert Ndwiga, the chairperson of Gakundu Coffee Cooperative Society, explained that the cooperative has been unable to repay the loan.

"Coffee factories are not profit-making. We sell coffee, deduct production costs, and pass the remaining balance to the farmers," Ndwiga said, emphasizing that reduced coffee production, largely due to climate change, has hindered their ability to generate sufficient revenue.

Ndwiga warned that if the government does not intervene, nearly 10,000 farmers could be directly affected by the auction of the cooperative's assets.

The farmers are now hoping that the court will grant their request to prevent the sale, which could have devastating consequences for their livelihoods.

The cooperative learned about the auction through newspaper reports, and Ndwiga expressed frustration that government officers had not visited the society before announcing the sale.

Bernard Murimi, a coffee farmer, called for government intervention to safeguard the future of local coffee farming within the cooperative. He expressed disappointment that, despite their support for the government, their struggles remain unaddressed.

Manyatta MP Gitonga Mukunji, who accompanied the farmers to court to secure an injunction against the auction, urged the government to fulfill its promises.

He noted that it was disheartening that the cooperative's assets were at risk of being sold, despite Parliament allocating Sh2 billion to clear debts owed by coffee factories to the Commodity Fund. Mukunji stressed that the government must act swiftly to avert this crisis.

"Parliament allocated more than Sh 200 billion to protect the sugar sector, and the government has acted on this. I wonder why the coffee sector, which received a smaller allocation, is facing these problems. The government must urgently address this issue as many of our farmers depend solely on coffee," Mukunji stated.

Mukunji specifically called on Cooperative Cabinet Secretary Wycliffe Oparanya to intervene urgently and prevent the collapse of the cooperative.