Potato farmers agony despite new regulations

When the government announced gazettement of the new potato law a month ago, it was good news for potato farmers across the country.

For Mr John Ikua, a farmer at Ndundori in Nyandarua County, the law assured him of an end to exploitation and at least good returns for his hard work but this has not been the case.

For so long, middlemen buy potatoes in 110kgs sacks which they later subdivided into 50kgs portions making a kill while the farmers hardly get to recoup the money used on their farms. 

“We thought the law had come to save us but we were wrong. We are still facing the same problems we used to experience before. We thought we could now dictate the market price for our potatoes since we are the people who know what we go through in our farms,” he says.

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The Crops (Irish Potato) Regulations 2019 which was passed by Parliament on May 2 and gazetted by Agriculture Cabinet Secretary Mwangi Kiunjuri requires that every potato farmer registers with the county government which is supposed to help in marketing. Small growers are required to register with a growers’ association.

Also, all marketing agents, dealers collection and warehouse store owners must register with the respective county governments and the produce be sold in kilogramme units and not per bag.

But to the surprise of many farmers in Nyandarua, this has not happened one month later.

The farmers are still being exploited by middlemen who still buy the produce in extended bags just like before.

“We have not seen any effort by government to control the packaging as the law stipulates. The middlemen insist on buying in extended bags which end up eating into the little we make from our farms,” lamented Jane Njeri, a farmer at Kinangop.

She says they still don’t know how to go about the registration process which was to take place immediately the law was effected.

“We have not been registered either as the law requires for the county government, it is a good idea which might die before it is even implemented. Our potatoes rot in farms as we wait for direction,” she added.

Many farmers now fear that if the law is not enacted, they would continue to make losses and now want relevant government agencies to intervene.

According to Nyandarua Governor Francis Kimemia, governors from potato growing counties are in consultations to see to it that the law is implemented in the next two weeks.

Among them are governors from Nakuru, Narok, Nyandarua, Kiambu, Meru, Kisii, and West Pokot.

“We want to make sure that our farmers are no longer exploited by middlemen as has been in the past. We are consulting and in the next two weeks, we will announce when we will start enacting it in all counties at the same time,” he said.

Hailing the move by the Agriculture CS to gazette the law, Mr Kimemia said the law will ensure farmers earn from their hard work.

“This is good news for our farmers who have suffered in the hands of brokers for a long time. We thank the government for the new development, we will do our best to ensure the law serves its purpose,” he said.

Nyandarua, he said produces over 30 per cent of potatoes consumed in the country meaning farmers from the region are the most affected.

“That is why we have not developed despite feeding the country with potatoes,” said the governor.

He said it was now upon the government, security agencies and county officials to enforce the law.  

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