Muguka farmers and transporters are changing their working hours to comply with the 7pm-5am nationwide curfew.
Harvesting, which has always been done very early in the morning and in the evening, is now done during the day.
Embu Muguka Sacco official Josphat Njue said farmers now ensure they are done harvesting by 2pm so buyers can collect the leaves for packaging and transportation by 3pm.
“At 3pm the transporters start their journey up to where the curfew gets them and then spend the night there so that if it’s a place like Mombasa they arrive there in the morning,” he said.
Njue said prices of the "green gold" have dropped sharply as a result of the curfew and ban on its sale in some places.
Muguka now goes for as little as Sh50 per kilogramme down from Sh1,500 per kg during better times.
Njue was optimistic that the curfew will be lifted soon "but only if Kenyans obey the government’s measures to prevent the spread of the virus".
He urged dealers to obey the government to avoid loses, citing a driver who was arrested on Monday night transporting five tonnes of muguka to the Coast and lost the consignment. The driver was arrested at Kabati in Kitui.
Njue also urged the police to be humane, adding that the farmers maintain high standards of hygiene while harvesting and packing the leaves.
He said due to their unique situation, dealers still pay the farmers in cash but all precautions are taken to protect each other.
Edited by Josephine M. Mayuya
