Farmers Federation protests restrictions on maize and milk by Kenya

Workers at a maize store in Uasin Gishu County (PHOTO: Peter Ochieng)

The East African Farmers Federation has raised concerns about the implication of the restrictions and the way they were implemented.

The federation Chief Executive Stephen Muchiri said the regulations were implemented without consultation with other stakeholders, adding that farmers and businessmen have incurred a lot of losses.

“The maize ban was a blanket ban, and then a few days later it was revised to introduce conditions, meaning that there was no consultation,” said Muchiri.

According to lobby group, the inconsistencies of the government are chasing away investments in this region.

“Kenya is starting to practice protectionist policies without consulting its own actors in agriculture. This is a big concern as it goes against the East Afican Community Treaty,” said Muchiri.

In the last one year Kenya has had trade related tensions with Uganda, especially on milk products, which saw Nairobi confiscate hundreds of tonnes of Lato milk in 2020. Recently, the Agriculture and Food Authority put restrictions on the importation of maize from Uganda and Tanzania, saying the cereals had high levels of aflatoxins.

The group is now asking for caution before such measures are taken.