CS Kagwe says Gov’t to set up agricultural police unit to protect tea sector

Agriculture Cabinet Secretary Mutahi Kagwe has announced that the ministry plans to introduce an agricultural police unit to safeguard the tea sector.

Speaking during a consultative meeting with stakeholders on Thursday, CS Kagwe noted that the government aims to instill mechanisms to safeguard investments in the tea value chain players, especially after the recent invasion of tea plantations and factories by members of the public.

Kagwe noted that the challenges curbing the sector need to be swiftly ironed out to promote a streamlined value chain from the farmers to distributors.

"All tea stakeholders shall prioritize increasing returns to the principal stakeholder; the tea farmer. In this regard, all stakeholders shall conduct their businesses ethically, promote transparency and good governance in their operations," he said.

The CS was meeting the leadership of the Kenya Tea Development Agency (KTDA), Kenya Tea Growers Association (KTGA), Independent Tea Producers (ITP), tea traders and Members of East African Tea Trade Association (EATTA) at the Tea Trade Centre.

Kagwe also directed that all tea producers shall implement targeted quality improvement strategies to enhance the quality of tea produced in Kenya.

Similarly, he said that the proposed tea levy shall allocate funds for the establishment of a Common Tea Market Development Fund which will be used to market and promote Kenya tea for local and international markets.

He added that the Ministry shall pursue the waiver of taxes and duties on packaging materials and on tea machinery with the National Treasury.