The Agriculture and Food Authority (AFA) is working on a mechanism to streamline the whole macadamia value chain in efforts to enhance the production of quality nuts fit for local and international markets.
The Authority said that in collaboration with County Governments, other Government agencies, and law enforcement agencies, they will intensify surveillance and enforcement across macadamia-growing and trading regions, aggregation stores, processing facilities, and exit points.
AFA Director General (DG) Dr. Bruno Linyiru said that the efforts to streamline the sector stem from their mandate to regulate, develop, and promote the Nuts and Oil Crops Sub-sector in accordance with the provisions of the Crops Act 2013, the AFA Act 2013, the Crops (Nuts and Oil Crops) Regulations 2020, and various standards.
Dr. Linyiru disclosed that through their routine surveillance and reports from stakeholders, they have noted that there has been a rise in malpractices within the macadamia nuts industry that compromised the integrity of the supply chain and undermined the reputation of Kenya’s Macadamia Industry.
“These malpractices include harvesting, handling, trading, and processing immature macadamia nuts; unauthorised trading of nuts by unlicensed individuals, particularly marketing agents; and improper discharge of rejected low-quality nuts into the supply chain, where they are often mixed with higher-quality nuts and resold to unsuspecting processors,” said Dr. Linyiru.
He added that the malpractices also include smuggling of macadamia nuts in-shell out of the country.
“The Authority hereby brings to the attention of all stakeholders that the provisions of Section 43 of the Agriculture and Food Authority Act prohibit the export of macadamia nuts in shell except with the written authority of the Cabinet Secretary,” said the DG.
According to Dr. Linyiru, sections 29 (1) and (2) of the Crops (Nuts and Oil Crops) Regulations, 2020, require all exports of nuts and oil crops produce and products, including macadamia nuts, to go through designated customs ports, and export permits must be applied for electronically through the KenTrade TFP Single-Window system for each shipment.
He divulged that regulation 23 of the Crops (Nuts and Oil Crops) Regulations, 2020, stipulates that macadamia nuts must only be harvested, handled, and processed when they are physiologically mature.
“Additionally, the Kenya Standard KS EAS 1169:2024 (Raw Macadamia Nuts In-Shell) and KS 2958-1:2022 (Nuts and Oil Crops Industry—Code of Practice Part 1: Tree Nuts) outline the quality requirements and best practices for macadamia nuts in shell,” said Linyiru.
Regarding registration and licensing, Dr. Linyiru said that Section 16(1) of the Crops Act, 2013, requires every dealer in scheduled crops to register with the Authority. For clarity, a “dealer” includes any person engaged in collecting, transporting, storing, distributing, buying, or selling nuts and oil crops produce, products, or by-products.
He said that this definition encompasses marketing agents, exporters, importers, shipchandlers, and commercial nursery operators. Furthermore, Section 18(1) mandates that manufacturers and processors of scheduled crop products, including macadamia, must be licensed by the Authority.
“Individuals or companies found engaging in the harvesting, trading, or processing of immature nuts, operating without a valid license, or discharging rejected or poor-quality nuts back into the supply chain or smuggling nuts out of the country will face strict legal action, including license suspension or revocation and criminal prosecution,” warned Dr. Linyiru.
He continued, “We urge all stakeholders—farmers, traders, processors, and exporters—to adhere to the relevant regulations and standards to protect the reputation, sustainability, and profitability of Kenya’s macadamia industry.”
By Joseph Ng’ang’a
