North Rift counties have urged farmers to adopt the Warehouse Receipt System, which is being rolled out this month by the government to help them store and market produce.
Counties are partnering with the national government to educate farmers on how the system works. Many said they don't understand.
Trans Nzoia Agriculture executive Mary Nzoma and her Uasin Gishu counterpart Samwel Yego said they were sensitising farmers on how the system works.
The government has already approved more than 12 stores at the NCPB to be used by farmers under the WRS. The farmers will be issued receipts as proof of ownership of maize and other cereals. These can be used as collateral for loans or farmers can wait to well when prices go up.
“The many challenges farmers face after harvesting will soon be addressed because WRS will help to modernise and enhance the efficiency of agricultural marketing systems," Nzomo said.
She said the Warehouse Receipt System Council and other stakeholders from NCPB and the East African Grain Council had already visited the region to assess the situation.
Nzomo said the county is completing construction of four warehouses in four subcounties in Trans Nzoia for the Warehouse Receipt System.
The programme also targets the use of certified private warehouses and NCPB for easy accessibility by farmers, Nzomo said.
WRS council team leader Isaiah Okeya said the council is a new parastatal mandated to structure the grain trade.
“Trans Nzoia county has been identified by the Warehouse Receipt Council as one of the first implementers of WRS," he said.
He said the county technical team will hold a series of farmers' training programmes across the county after the launch of the WRS.
Yego separately said they would work with the WRS council to ensure that the system works effectively to benefit farmers.
“As counties we are in discussion with the ministry so all issues raised by farmers on the WRS are dealt with as the programme is rolled out," he said.
(Edited by V. Graham)
