County accuses private coffee millers of rip-off

By WAINAINA NDUNG’U

The Nyeri county government yesterday accused private coffee millers of ripping off farmers.

The county government, which has incorporated a milling and marketing company, claimed private millers had in the past under-declared top coffee grades while exaggerating milling loses on produce submitted by farmers.

Nyeri County Executive Secretary for Agriculture Shadrack Mubea said there was now a big difference in percentage of top grades of coffee submitted to the KPCU Sagana Mills by farmers from Nyeri and Kirinyaga counties.

“One particular co-operative society has reported a 60 per cent component in top grades of AA and AB in its consignment,” said Mubea.

The county government said coffee milling companies had also been ripping off farmers through over-declaration of moisture levels in parchment consignment, which translates to higher milling losses.

“In the most extreme case, milling loss was as high as 40 per cent. It meant that every 100 bags of coffee submitted for milling shrank to 60 bags after milling,” said Mathira East District Co-operative Officer Peter Mburu.

Mubea said the county government would save each of the 104 coffee factories in the area at least Sh1.5 million in marketing agency fees, totalling over Sh150 million annually.

“We are giving our farmers a headstart through the milling partnership we have signed with Sagana Mills, which empowers us to appoint representatives to monitor the milling process,” said Mubea.

He spoke as the Nyeri county government kicked off a string of annual general meetings for coffee co-operative societies that have sought to block them from interfering in the milling and marketing of coffee.

At a meeting at the Kamunyaka Coffee Factory under the Iria-ini Coffee Farmers Society in Mathira, farmers kicked out the management committee, appointed an interim team and resolved that an audit be conducted on the outgoing office holders.

Farmers also approved the milling of their produce at Sagana under the Mt Kenya Coffee Development and Marketing Company, which is fronted by the county government.

Nyeri Governor Nderitu Gachagua said they wanted all coffee societies in the area to hold fresh elections because most of the management committees were not serving farmers’ interests.

Other societies where the county government plans to hold meetings are Gikanda (Mathira), Mutheka (Tetu) and Rumukia (Mukurwe-ini).