Nut farmers in Kenya unite

At least 600 macadamia nut farmers in Tigania East and West in Meru County have formed a cooperative society to kick exploitative brokers out of the sector. The farmers have vowed to lock them out by use of the cooperative that is expected to pool over 500 tonnes of nuts each season. With processors currently buying a kilo at between Sh80 and Sh100, the farmers' produce will be worth over Sh50 million. There are prospects of the sector rebounding during the "small crop" in October and November, with prices expected to hit Sh150 a kilo when the main harvesting season starts early next year. However, with the current situation where processors shut their buying centres and are relying on middlemen, farmers fear brokers are likely to manipulate farm gate prices and pocket most of the money. Meru Macadamia Farmers Association chairman Joshua Muriira said farmers had woken up to the reality that the government was not keen on championing the rights of the farmers, saying after years of ...