Carrot farmers and members of the Mau Narok farmers rural Sacco will start exporting their produce to East African countries after the Horticultural Crops Development Authority (HCDA) issued them a licence.
The more than 600 farmers had earlier cried foul, accusing the agency of discrimination and blocking them from accessing the market at the expense of brokers in the area.
The standoff was resolved after a meeting between HCDA, Sacco officials and top county government leaders following concerns over exploitation of farmers by brokers.
HCDA acting technical general manager Wilfred Galana urged the Sacco members to fulfil two pending requirements before the licence could be issued.
“We are aware of the exploitation by brokers and the importance of licences to farmers. Ours is to make sure that the highest standards and regulations are met by the Sacco while applying for the licences,” said Galana.
Galana refuted claims that the agency was favouring brokers under Manaka Sacco, leading to a conflict of interest. The conflict allegedly led to the Mau Narok rural Sacco suffering losses amounting to over Sh100,000.
He called upon the Sacco officials to hasten the fulfilment of the requirements for their permit to be issued before the end of this week.
Nakuru County value chain development officer Hillary Ng’eno said the national carrot packaging standard of 137 kilogrammes will be reviewed to acceptable weights. This is to enable farmers get the maximum benefits from their produce.