Sugar cane farmers in Nyanza have appealed to millers to increase the price from Sh3,600 to Sh4,500 per tonne delivered.
The plea comes after Agriculture Cabinet Secretary Peter Munya banned importation of sugar into the country early this month.
The ban is expected to eradicate cheap sugar, which has led to low prices of locally produced sugar in the market.
But the Smallholders Sugar Cane Farmers Association of Kenya said stopping imports would only result in high cost of sugar in the local market.
Organising secretary Vitalis Okinda said the sugar price should be increased from next month.
Speaking in Homa Bay town, Okinda said farmers should also benefit when millers increase sugar prices as a result of the ban on imports.
Okinda argued that elimination of brown sugar from the market would give millers an opportunity to sell sugar at their desired prices.
Okinda said cane farmers’ interests should be given utmost priority.
“Most sugar millers buy sugar cane at Sh3,600 but we don’t expect this price to remain the same after elimination of brown sugar from the market. We urge the sugar industries to increase cane price by Sh900,” Okinda said.
He said the ban will also increase the quantity of sugar cane milled by the companies.
This is expected to enable the companies purchase more sugar cane from farmers.
The official regretted that many farmers are suffering due to the inability of the millers to harvest their sugar cane.
“Many farmers have their sugar cane expiring in plantations because they haven’t harvested due to sugar importation and bad weather. We hope the mills will now upscale the level of sugar cane intake,” he added.
The farmers lauded President Uhuru Kenyatta and CS Munya for introducing reforms in the sugar sector.
Edited by Henry Makori
