By John Kariuki

Kirinyaga Senator James Murango has sounded an alarm over fresh schemes in the coffee sector that he says threaten to drag farmers back to the painful days of the Nyayo and Biwott era.

The Senator expressed concern after the Agriculture and Food Authority (AFA) registered new companies and issued them licenses to buy coffee directly from farmers, bypassing the Nairobi Coffee Exchange. This comes at a time when discussions are still ongoing on giving farmers freedom to sell their coffee in markets of their choice.

Murango reminded Kenyans of the dark past when similar schemes allowed cartels to hijack the sector, leaving farmers with only meagre returns for their hard labor. He warned that the current developments mirror those days and vowed that farmers will not accept a return to that exploitative system.

The law is clear on direct sales, which the Coffee Act 2019 defines as a contractual arrangement between a grower, cooperative society, union, grower miller, estate, or association of coffee growers and an overseas buyer or local roaster, based on mutually accepted terms and enforceable in law.

Murango said AFA’s move contravenes the Coffee Act 2019 and goes against the Coffee Bill currently before the National Assembly. He questioned the speed behind the registration of new companies, suggesting there could be hidden motives that risk sabotaging farmers’ welfare.

He assured coffee farmers that he will not relent in safeguarding their interests, emphasizing that the sector must be shielded from manipulation and exploitation.