This archive report was first published on 7 September 2021.
Kenya's tea farmers are set to benefit from a cheaper fertilizer transport deal, courtesy of the standard gauge railway (SGR) freight services.
According to Agriculture Cabinet Secretary Peter Munya, the Tea Development Agency (Holdings) Ltd has recommended the use of SGR freight services, which are cheaper and the best mode of transportation.
Speaking during the flagging off of the first batch of the consignment at the port of Mombasa, Munya assured over 600,000 smallholder tea growers that the subsidy will reduce the cost by Sh 600 per 50 kg bag from Sh 3,073 to Sh 2,473.
He pointed out that last year, smallholder tea farmers did not apply fertilizer due to supply chain disruptions caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.
Additionally, Munya noted that the lading price for the commodities being imported on behalf of the agency for small holder tea farmers has increased by 54 per cent, from an average of Sh 1,996 per 50 kg bag in 2019 to Sh 3,073 last year.
“The commodity will be used during the forthcoming short rains which are expected to begin in October,” Munya said.
The imported consignment of 86,288 metric tonnes of fertilizer will be transported to farmers countrywide using the SGR freight services, aimed at cutting costs.
