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The government has intensified its efforts to inspect seeds sold to farmers after it emerged some are fake.
Agriculture PS Paul Ronoh said on Saturday all certified seed distributors appointed by the government are being subjected to another thorough inspection.
“This is to make sure that the seeds they are distributing are certified. Distributors found selling fake seeds have and will continue being arrested,” he said.
Ronoh spoke at the Export Trading Group warehouse in Bonje, Mombasa, where he flagged off the government’s first consignment of 400,000 tonnes of fertiliser to benefit four million farmers across the country.
Anyone buying seeds from agrovets, agrodealers and seed distributors must ensure they get only certified seeds so as not to compromise the quality of their produce, the PS said.
Ronoh also warned against importation of substandard herbicides.
“These herbicides have been found to be fake and sometimes dangerous and unhealthy to our environment,” he said.
A number of such importers have been arrested through the Pest Control Products Board.
This year’s demand for fertiliser for the long rains is close to 4,000 tonnes, translating to about 7.5 million bags, Ronoh said.
For the short rains, it is about four million bags.
“In total, we are looking at about 12 million bags of fertilisers for the whole year for both the long and the short rains. This is for all the 14 value chains the government is engaging on in terms of food production,” Ronoh said.
The 14 value chains include crops like maize, potatoes, tea, pyrethrum, rice and coffee in 14 counties.
The counties include Nyamira, Kisii, Nakuru, Kericho, Bomet and Narok.
Ronoh urged farmers to store their maize in National Cereals and Produce Board warehouses, saying they charge lower than other warehouses.
NCPB charges Sh10 per bag per month for storage and Sh70 per bag for drying of the maize.
The PS said NCPB buys maize from farmers at Sh4,000 per 50kg bag.
“I request farmers who have surplus maize in their stores to take advantage of the government's plan to buy maize through NCPB,” Ronoh said.
On Saturday, the government flagged off 45 trucks full of fertiliser to different parts of the country.
The fertiliser will be sold at Sh2,500 per 50kg bag.
Farmers will access the input through agrodealers, agrovets, the NCPB and other sites identified in collaboration with county governments.
“This arrangement will not only boost the morale of farmers, but will also enhance food security as promised by this administration,” Ronoh said.
For maize production, the government targets 63 million bags in harvest this year.
Farmers are encouraged to register themselves with the e-voucher system to access fertilisers by dialling *616*3#.
The government has 6.4 million farmers in its database.
Ronoh said they have made arrangements to use the consignment model so that the private sector, the agrodealers, can get business with the subsidised fertilisers programme.
“We have registered close to 16,000 agrodealers, who are working together with the key manufacturers like ETG, to ensure they access these fertilisers and distribute to the farmers,” Ronoh said.
During the short rains, PS Ronoh said, the government will distribute about 200,000 tonnes of additional fertiliser to farmers.
