By E, KNA
Bomet Acting County Commissioner Reuben Ratemo has urged tea farmers affiliated with the Kenya Tea Development Agency (KTDA) factory companies to remain patient amid the prevailing low bonus payout experienced this year.
This follows threats from some disgruntled farmers to abandon tea farming, or have the tea crop entirely uprooted from their farms due to low returns where small holder farmers in west of Rift Valley region, including Bomet averagely received Sh13 per kilo of green leaf delivered in this year’s bonus payout, down from an average of Sh20 paid last year.
While addressing residents of Singorwet in Boment central sub-county, Ratemo advised tea farmers to continue tending their crop, noting that the low pay could be due to a seasonal challenge, which will be addressed in the long run.
He reassured the farmers that the government was committed to ensure that they got the best returns from their investment in the tea sector, hence the need to continue with their husbandry and delivery of tea leaf to KTDA.
The county commissioner observed that abandoning tea farming will be disastrous to farmers since the crop was already a steady cash earner for households in the area despite the challenges which he noted were due to global market upsets.
“Abandoning tea is not the solution, my advice is that as farmers we do our best in tending the crop as per the advice of the agriculture extension officers, deliver the leaf accordingly and let the agency and the marketers vouch for market and better pay,” Ratemo said.
He asked the farmers to explore and practice better crop husbandry methods for better yield so as to reap maximum benefits from their crop, even during low seasons such as the one experienced this year.