David Mugonyi
26 May 2008
London — Coffee from Kenya will now attract higher prices following the signing of regulations governing the sector in London Sunday.
The regulations signed under the International Coffee Agreement will allow coffee from the country to be branded thereby fetching it higher prices.
The country's coffee is among the best in quality in the world and is used to blend others. This is the first time Kenya will be branding its coffee.
Although coffee at the auction in Kenya fetches between $100 and $200 (about Sh6200 and Sh12,400) per 60 Kg bag, selling it directly to a dealer abroad will fetch the farmer $600 (about Sh 37,200).
This means that importers who use Kenyan coffee to blend their low quality produce will acknowledge the country's input in their labelling.
Bypass middlemen
Previously, although the coffee from Kenya has been used to blend others from different countries, it has never been acknowledged.
Agriculture permanent secretary, Romano Kiome who was in London to sign the agreement on behalf of the Government, also revealed that small scale farmers could now bypass middlemen and market their coffee directly to consumers according to the new law.
Mr Kiome, who was attending the International Coffee Organisation meeting said: "The new agreement now eliminates the bias that favoured the consumer who decided the prices of the produce."
He was accompanied by MPs from the Parliamentary Committee on Agriculture, Erastus Mureithi and Peris Simam, as well as Coffee Board of Kenya managing director, Loise Njeru.
Also present was Kenya's High Commissioner, Joseph Muchemi.
The new law, which Kenya became the first country to sign and ratify, now, recognises the producer as a major player in the industry that had been under the whims of the consumer and middlemen.
Mr Kiome said the law will enable small scale farmers to benefit from marketing and funds for research unlike before.
Recognised
He said Kenya, which produces more than 80 per cent of special coffee, is now being recognised after years of struggle to have the produce fetch more money, because it was used worldwide to blend others.
Kenya's coffee has over the years been used to improve other low quality produce due to its taste.
And the Government is also in the process of registering the seven brands of coffee from the country with the World Intellectual Property Office and the Kenya Industrial Property Institute.
Already it had secured Sh550 million from the European Union that will be used in branding of the coffee among other projects in the industry.
With the new law in place small-scale farmers can come together and market their produce directly to the buyer eliminating up to five middlemen.
However, he ruled out labelling of coffee before export arguing that since it was used to blending others there was no need.
Be the first to Write a Comment!
Copyright © 2008 The Nation. All rights reserved. Distributed by AllAfrica Global Media (allAfrica.com). To contact the copyright holder directly for corrections — or for permission to republish or make other authorized use of this material, click here.
AllAfrica aggregates and indexes content from over 125 African news organizations, plus more than 200 other sources, who are responsible for their own reporting and views. Articles and commentaries that identify allAfrica.com as the publisher are produced or commissioned by AllAfrica.
