Gachagua holds talks with Danish envoy over troubled coffee sector

By NDERITU GICHURE                 

Council of Governors Agriculture Committee Chairman Nderitu Gachagua Tuesday held talks with the Danish ambassador on promoting Kenyan coffee in the international market.

Gachagua, also the Nyeri governor,  had announced that the ambassador was seeking clarification on some claims recently raised by a section of farmers and traders.

The meeting took place a few days after the closure of the Nairobi Coffee Exchange (NCE) after some big companies and coffee buyers failed to turn up for the weekly auction of the commodity.

The NCE, however, reopened for trading yesterday. The buyers claimed that governors had interfered with coffee marketing.

Gachagua said the ambassador wondered why some counties had decided to market their produce at a central point without involving middlemen.

The move was, however, met with resistance, eliciting debate locally with Gachagua stating that critics are fearing to lose the hefty profits they have been making by exploiting farmers.

“Tea farmers sell their produce through the Kenya Tea Development Agency (KTDA) and nobody asks a question. But when coffee farmers take a similar direction wrangles begin and no explanation is given over the resistance,” the governor noted.

Gachagua lauded Agriculture Cabinet Secretary Felix Kosgei, saying he was cooperative.

“The cabinet secretarty has realised that agriculture is a devolved function and is working very closely with all the 47 governors,” he said.