On November 21, 2018, sixty macadamia farmers from Nyeri, Embu and Meru moved to court in a fresh push to be allowed to export their nuts unprocessed, saying the crop is their only source of income.
The farmers, led by John Muriithi through an affidavit, say macadamia sales pay school fees and keep their households afloat. They want the court to open international markets to them, including buyers in China, where they say they can get better prices for their produce.
The suits name the Cabinet Secretary for Agriculture, Fisheries and Livestock, the Agriculture and Food Authority, and the Attorney General as key respondents. Kenya Revenue Authority and the Council of Governors are listed as interested parties.
According to the farmers, Chinese investors who had come to Meru were previously buying the nuts at Sh300 per kilo before they were “illegally” arrested and extradited by the respondents. They argue that the move hurt farmers who had already found a market for their crop.
The petitioners have filed three cases and are asking the court to interpret section 43 of the Agriculture Fisheries and Food Authority Act, 2013, especially on what qualifies as “raw macadamia.” They say the law should not be used to block them from selling macadamia with shell overseas, which they describe as a higher-value product in the international market.
In one of the prayers, Muriithi asked for “A declaratory order to be issued forthwith decreeing that the applicants are entitled to own and sell their macadamia to the buyer of their choice locally and internationally with or without shell provided that the same is not raw macadamia as stated in law,”
The farmers also contend that any ban on exporting macadamia with shell is unconstitutional. They further argue that forcing them to remove shells against their wishes amounts to an unreasonable interference with consumer rights and human dignity.
The respondents want the petition struck out, while Tharaka-Nithi county government and the NutProcessors Association of Kenya (Nutpak) have applied to be joined in the matter. A ruling on that application was set for November 22, 2018.
One related case in Embu has already been dismissed, but the farmers have appealed to the Court of Appeal in Nyeri.
The dispute turns on section 43 of the AFFA Act and the farmers’ claim that county governments, not the Agriculture and Food Authority, hold the constitutional mandate to regulate and license agricultural crops.
