Rice Farmers Decry Lack Of Market As Supply Bump

Rice farmers in Kirinyaga county want the government to provide a better market for their products following a bumper harvest that has seen the price of the commodity drop.

A kilo of Pishori rice has dropped to 140 shillings from 180 shillings last month owing to increased supplies. Mwea irrigation Scheme manager Innocent Ariemba said rice was doing well due to proper water management. He added that production in the scheme is projected to increase following the construction of the Thiba Dam.

The dam, which is 1 kilometer long and 40 meters deep has been filled with 15.6 million cubic meters of water. This will help in boosting irrigation in the region, where rice farming is mostly done.

Farmers expressed fear that their rice might go to waste if it is not bought, subjecting them to massive losses. They also warned the government against importing rice given the high production in the scheme which accounts for 80 percent of the country’s rice.

“It is true we have so much rice in our stores which have not been sold and farmers may suffer if urgent measures are not taken,” Mwea Rice Growers Multipurpose Cooperative Society chairman Ndege Muriuki said.

Mwea MP Mary Maingi assured the growers that the National Cereals and Produce Board (NCPB) will buy the rice which is more than 400,000 bags worth millions of shillings.

The Mwea irrigation scheme accounts for 80 percent of Kenya’s rice, playing a major role in the nationwide supply of grain. The total annual rice production in the scheme is estimated at 113,000 metric tons, with a potential for enhanced production.

The Kenya National Trading Cooperation (KNTC) which was directed by the government to buy rice at 85 shillings from the farmers has been absent from the market.

In February last year, the government ordered KNTC to buy rice at 85 shillings up from 45 shillings in a bid to cushion farmers from losses. KNTC bought rice for some time but later vanished leaving farmers in the hands of brokers.

The government had said that it would import 600,000 metric tonnes of rice in February next year following a 35 percent waiver. Farmers have however called upon the government to hold on to the plan until their harvest is bought.

” We have a lot of rice and the government should wait until we sell it before it allows imported one to flood the market,” one of the farmers said.