Potato Farmers Protest Exploitation By Middlemen

Potato farmers in Elgeyo Marakwet are a frustrated lot following the drastic plummeting of prices of the commodity amidst high costs of production.

The farmers accuse middlemen of occasioning the potatoes awful prices, claiming that brokers had thronged their farms armed with exploitative gunny bags and lorries and were dictating the prices.

They lamented that over a month ago, a 50-kg bag of Irish potatoes sold for Sh2,500, which has since dropped to a paltry Sh500.

‘The stranglehold of brokers has brought us to our knees. We, the farmers, find ourselves at their mercy as they control market access and capital flow,’ lamented Cheruiyot.

He decried that the lack of a standardised selling framework by the county government had given the middlemen unchecked power. ‘Brokers, although a thorn for farmers, provide immediate financial relief, leading many to reluctantly comply with their demands,’ he noted.

One of the main predicaments exacerbating the farmers’ plight is the geographical challenge, as Eldoret, the primary market for their produce, is far from the farms. That being the case, transportation challenges plague the farmers, leaving them at the mercy of merciless brokers.

These intermediaries, in turn, cherry-pick the best yields, leaving the remainder to rot in the fields. Such wastage adds to the mounting financial losses suffered by the farmer.

Interviewed by KNA, many farmers said they conceded to the brokers’ demands out of desperation owing to the many financial obligations they have to fulfil, including school fees and medical bills.

It is against this backdrop that the farmers appealed to the county government’s Agriculture Department to intervene and lock out brokers from the potato business by taking charge of marketing their produce directly.

Source: Kenya News Agency