Kenya’s coffee output peaked at 129,000 tonnes in 1988/89, but has since dropped steadily due to poor management and global price swings. Farmers have switched crops or sold their land.
Kenya’s harvest fell 12 percent in the 2016/17 season to 40,700 tonnes, according to government data.
Gatundu South MP Moses Kuria has raised concerns over the progress of his Crops Amendment Bill which he presented to the House Speaker Justin Mutui in June last year.
The Bill seeks to ban the export of unprocessed coffee to boost farmers’ earnings.
In a letter addressed to Muturi dated January 14, Kuria protests the delay by the House Business Committee to present the bill for deliberation in the House.
The MP sought to know from the speaker why since he “tabled the bill on June 12 last year, no progress has been made by the House Business Committee to bring it to the floor of the house.”
He urged Muturi to intervene and have the proposed amendment in the crop laws moved for debate to improve the farmers’ situation.
“They have even resorted to uprooting the crop,” he said.
Raw coffee beans, which are Kenya’s fifth-biggest source of hard currency, are usually sold at a weekly auction in Nairobi or directly to buyers abroad who then roast, package and sell them at a hefty premium.