Kenya Sugar Board denies claims harmful sugar worth Ksh1.5B was released into local market

In a statement issued on Tuesday after appearing before the National Assembly’s Departmental Committee on Trade, Industry and Cooperatives, the regulator said allegations that “harmful sugar” had been distributed locally were false.

“The allegation that a consignment of harmful sugar worth Ksh1.5bn has been imported in the country, repackaged and distributed to the domestic market is false. No harmful sugar has been released for human consumption,” the board said.

The board said it has put in place compliance mechanisms to ensure sugar imported under the duty remission framework is strictly used for industrial purposes, including annual audits on manufacturers to establish capacity and annual requirements.

It said it submits individual company requirements to the National Treasury’s Duty Remission Committee for consideration and approval, after which manufacturers import on a consignment-specific permit basis and file monthly returns showing quantities allocated, imported and utilised.

Kenya Sugar Board said the country remains a net importer due to a production deficit, citing output of 472,773 metric tonnes in 2023, 815,454 metric tonnes in 2024 and 611,576 metric tonnes in 2025 against consumption of 1,152,205 metric tonnes in 2025 alone.

It said Kenya imported 608,178 metric tonnes in 2023, 338,345 metric tonnes in 2024 and 477,551 metric tonnes in 2025.

The board said refined sugar imported for industrial use is restricted to manufacturers, arguing that controls prevent diversion into the domestic retail market.

On the specific case of Mombasa Sugar Refinery Limited (MSRL), the board said the firm is a duly registered refinery authorised and gazetted by the EAC Council of Ministers to import raw cane sugar for refining into white sugar for industrial use.

It cited Gazette Notice No. EAC/G2/92/2025 dated April 16, 2025.

The regulator said the 27,000-metric-tonne consignment in question was imported in raw form and “has never been diverted nor offered for sale in the country,” adding that it is securely stacked inside a customs bonded warehouse at the Kenya Ports Authority in Mombasa pending completion of customs processes.

The board said the National Treasury Cabinet Secretary constituted a multi-agency team in March 2026 involving the Kenya Sugar Board, Kenya Revenue Authority, Kenya Bureau of Standards, the State Department of Industry and the National Police Service to set conditions for release of the consignment and a monitoring framework to prevent diversion.

It said industrial sugar is not the same as table sugar and is intended for use by industrial manufacturers such as bakeries, beverage plants and large-scale food processors.

The board insisted it has not allowed the importation, selling or repackaging of industrial sugar for consumer markets, saying it continues to enforce the Sugar Act, 2024 to ensure products in the market meet required standards.

“Therefore, no harmful sugar has been repackaged and distributed in the country,” the board said.