Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua has been a man on a mission to fight what he says are coffee cartels and middlemen are controlling the coffee sector in Kenya, and reaping big at the expense of coffee farmers.
Upon assumption of office slightly over one year ago, Gachagua embarked on two things in his Mt. Kenya backyard: to end the illicit brew menace and crush coffee cartels.
But things do not look too good for the good man from Mathira making it look like he is losing the war while still talking tough.
On Saturday, he made another pronouncement devoid of the tough talk but seeking a middle ground.
“We have nothing against them, all we are asking is, can we share the profits with you? Don’t take everything. That is the battle we have had with them in coffee because they want to take everything, and we know how much they sell and how much they pay us. Our fight with them is can we share 50/50 on the profit?” he said of middlemen in the sector.
He insists the reforms are still on course and the government will sort out the mess in the coffee sector.
In his maiden remarks on coffee when he opened the coffee conference in Meru in June, the deputy president vowed to do whatever it takes to end the cartels’ trade and help farmers benefit from their hard work.
He said the government is not after coffee returns, but to help farmers get what they deserve.
“For the next two days, we will establish structures for long-term reforms in the coffee sub-sector. Those who sweat most in producing coffee have benefited the least. We want to link the farmer to the consumer, directly,” Gachagua said at the coffee reforms conference.
The DP then embarked on several trips to the Mt. Kenya region, where together with leaders who accompanied him, vowed to fulfil what he promised coffee farmers.
In every stop he made, he said that the reforms put in place by the Kenya Kwanza government are already in motion and denying the said cartels sleep.
The DP flew to Bogota, Colombia, in September for a coffee conference. In Chinchiná, Gachagua appealed to Colombia to partner with Kenya to boost the coffee trade in Kenya.
He said the government has started coffee reforms that are already paying off.
Upon return from Colombia, Gachagua continued with the coffee gospel but the hurdles were too many already. Towards the end of September, Gachagua seemed to express frustration at the reforms he was implementing, saying the cartels were tough to handle.
The DP said the coffee profiteers had infiltrated government offices and were proving too difficult to deal with.
Then Gachagua turned his frustration at the media, accusing the fourth estate of colluding with the said cartels to frustrate government efforts to reform the coffee sector.
He said the cartels were sponsoring headlines and news to make it look like the government had made life difficult for farmers to access coffee markets.
“Those who peddle gossip claim that we’ve raised our hands in surrender to the cartels. Give us another 3 to 4 weeks and we will put these people in their place,” Gachagua remarked.
The DP also disclosed alleged attempts to influence government decisions on reforms.
He claimed that Mithika Linturi, the Cabinet Secretary for the Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock Development, was offered Ksh.30 million but he refused.
Subsequently, those with vested interests approached the Deputy President with offers to abandon reforms, which he declined.
“Reforms began in 2019. They then intimidated the Government and it was suspended for one year, after which they compromised Peter Munya who got rid of the reforms and put in place others detrimental to farmers,” Gachagua posited.
Then came his remarks that the government was willing to engage the said cartels in talks to see how to uplift the coffee industry.
While vowing that the government will not succumb to pressure from the cartels, he said they were willing to talk to them as long as they upped the price of coffee for the benefit of the farmers.
And now, Gachagua is decrying the same cartels blocking the sale of coffee.
Speaking in Othaya on Sunday, the DP said coffee marketers had initiated a buy-out boycott due to the continuing reforms, leaving farmers stuck with their coffee beans.
Gachagua confirmed the standoff but maintained that the government is ready to face off with the marketers, even as it sets aside Ksh.4 billion to cushion coffee farmers from losses they may incur.
At least 200,000 coffee bags are in the hands of unlicensed marketers to sell abroad, while farmers are stuck with more coffee.
Buyers are now boycotting buying the coffee, something that has left farmers staring at massive losses.
The said cherry fund by the government will cushion the farmers for six months, but it is not guaranteed.
The DP says the government has secured a market in the US and Starbucks will be buying coffee directly from farmers, as one way of reducing losses and crushing the cartels.
