The Mountain Journal
editor@themountainjournal.co.ke
Parliamentarians from the West of the Rift called for a Committee to investigate Kenya Tea Development Agency (KTDA) operations over the reduced bonus payment.
which they have accused of being corrupt following the discrepancies in 2025 tea bonuses payment.
In a press conference the Members led by Brighton Yegon the vice chairperson at the Agriculture and Livestock Committee condemned the low bonus payment to the tea growers indicating that the 700,00O farmers have been short-changed yet again despite their relentless effort in producing the world’s best tea.
The Members were drawn from Bomet, Kericho, Kisii, Nandi and Nyamira Counties.
The lawmakers blamed KTDA MS for failing to control rising costs of production and management, including inflated firewood procurement and staff expenses and manipulation of weighing scales by some field clerks.
“In Kenya, tea is the 2nd foreign exchange earner and last year tea exports were worth Sh 215billion and 68 percent of national tea production is from West of Rift while 32 per cent is from East of Rift. However, tea prices from west of the rift are dismal and worth concern,” . Yegon said.
The legislators demanded the introduction of blind or scientific tea testing at the auction to eliminate bias and guarantee fairness and a balanced representation model at KTDA Holdings claiming that the current one is imbalanced in favor of East of Rift farmers.
“In 2025, we cannot have the mouth being the single tasting instrument of products. We must move to scientific tasting and to KTDA management, once this Ad-hoc Committee is formed, we will tackle the cartels once and for all,” Clive Gisario from Kitutu Masaba.
They observed that out of the f 13 brokerage companies operating at the Mombasa Tea Auction only one firm comes from the West of Rift, yet this region contributes 68 percent of the national tea production.
“We demand fair representation in brokerage licensing to ensure equitable participation and regional inclusivity in tea marketing. We also demand immediate disbandment of the tea trade association and a transparent exercise involving the farmer be put in place,” part of their press statement read.
