Kenya’s sugar industry is coming under fresh pressure from cheap imports and competition for cane, with MPs warning that local farmers and millers could continue losing ground unless stronger controls are put in place.
The National Assembly Trade Committee has called for tougher safeguards against uncontrolled sugar imports, saying the measures are needed to protect local sugar producers and farmers who depend on the industry.
The committee also raised concerns about the growing practice of cane poaching in sugarcane-growing areas, where rival millers and jaggeries are accused of taking cane from farmers contracted to supply particular factories.
The concerns emerged when the committee, led by Tigania West MP John Mutunga, visited South Nyanza Sugar Company (Sony Sugar) in Migori County.
The visit formed part of the committee’s ongoing inquiry into raw sugar imports and the problems facing the sugar sector.
Funyula MP Oundo Midenyo said Kenya needed to strengthen its border controls and stop illegal sugar from reaching the local market.
“We need to tighten our borders and stop illegal sugar from coming into the country. I have a responsibility to protect Kenyan farmers, especially the cane farmers in my constituency, who depend on this industry for their livelihoods,” Oundo said.
Sony Sugar Managing Director Jane Pamela told the MPs that increased sugar imports had affected local manufacturers by weakening the market for locally produced sugar.
She said porous borders were allowing illegal sugar from neighbouring countries into Kenya, where its lower prices were making it difficult for local producers to sell their products.
“Illegal sugar imports through porous borders are flooding the local market with cheap sugar,” Pamela said.
Pamela also asked for steps to make fertiliser more affordable and easier for sugarcane farmers to obtain, saying increased access to farm inputs would help improve cane production.
She said farmers were having difficulties obtaining government-subsidised fertiliser, despite the fact that it costs less than fertiliser bought directly from the market.
The Sony Sugar boss further called for stricter regulation of the industry, noting that millers were dealing with poor prices and shrinking profit margins.
She said the financial difficulties affecting millers were also having an effect on farmers, making it harder for them to sustain sufficient sugarcane production.
The MPs were also briefed on the diversion of sugarcane to jaggeries, which process cane through traditional methods to produce unrefined whole-cane sugar.
Sony Sugar has about 8,000 hectares under contracted farmers and currently has enough cane for its processing operations.
Despite this supply, Pamela said the company was facing continued cane poaching by other sugar mills and jaggeries.
The issue prompted Aldai MP Maryanne Keitany to question how contracted farmers could be prevented from selling cane to competitors after receiving inputs and other support from a particular miller.
“Can we have a mechanism to ensure farmers who receive inputs a particular sugar company honour their contracts and supply their cane to that company, rather than diverting it to other millers?,” Keitany posed.
The committee said stronger safeguards were necessary to protect the interests of both farmers and local factories as it continued examining the challenges affecting Kenya’s sugar industry.
Its inquiry is looking at raw sugar imports alongside wider problems facing the sector, including access to farm inputs, declining returns for millers and the movement of cane from contracted factories to competing processors.