Jitters as edible oil manufacturers lay off employees

Nairobi; Kenya: Members of the edible oil sub-sector under the Kenya Association of manufacturers have raised alarm over illicit cooking oil entering the country, leading to loss of billions of shillings and putting at stake thousands of jobs. They said close to 300 containers of the illegal untaxed imports enter the country per month through the Mombasa port.
Pwani Oil Products Managing Director Rajul Malde said the industry is faced with an influx of imported refined and packed vegetable oils that are entering the country without proper payment of duties and taxes at the port of Mombasa.
“The imports are also not having the Kebs mark of standard quality,” he said. He said the imports started early last year and this has forced him to lay off 150 staff and expects to lay off another 300 at the end of the year.
He said as a local investor, he pays the Government Sh1.2 billion per year in terms of taxes and employs 1,200 staff in the company. He warned that if the Government does not stop the importation of the vegetable oil, his company would last about four months and close down.
“I have only four months to operate in Kenya,and if the imports continue, I will close shop and ask everybody to go home,”he said.
He said based on this, players in the sub-sector and Kam wrote to the Kenya Revenue Authority Commissioner General last Tuesday with a seven-day notice asking for action against the issue, failure to which they will proceed to the court.
Malde said that relevant Government agencies have been notified of the illegal trade by local oil manufacturers but have failed to act, and no reasons given.
He said the vegetable oil comes to Mombasa port in 20 litre jerricans and have been sold to unsuspecting Kenyans at Bondeni in Mombasa, Msambweni in Kwale, Githurai in Nairobi County and many other places in the country.