The Nakuru County government has started enforcing a new law that limits the packaging of potatoes to 50 Kilogram bags.
This follows the gazzettement of standard packaging weights for various produce including cereals, legumes, roots and tuber crops as per the Agriculture, Fisheries and Food Authority act of 2013.
Any person in contravention of the law is liable upon conviction to fine not exceeding half a million shillings or to imprisonment for a term not exceeding one year or both.
“All the county government enforcement officers manning roadblocks and cess collection have been instructed not to clear any vehicle not complying with the law. They are also to arrest all those found packaging or transporting Irish potatoes in excess of the standard 50kgs,'' said Purity Muritu, the Nakuru County Chief Officer for Agriculture Livestock and Fisheries.
Muritu added that farmers should lead in complying with the new law as there are the ones who suffer most when potatoes are packaged in large sacks.
She noted that packaging of potatoes in large sacks reduces farmers profit considering the cost of farm inputs used.
“We are working together with other potatoes producing counties like Nyandarua, Narok and Bomet to ensure that the EFFA ACT 2013 is enforced forthwith,'' added Muritu.
She said that County Executive Members for Agriculture, Livestock and Fisheries from these counties have already held a meeting with Deputy County Commissioners and OCPDs with a view of working out modalities of enforcing the law.
Muritu called for co-operation from farmers, transporters and business people to ensure that the Act implementation is successful.
Nakuru Governor Kinuthia Mbugua has also said that in order to secure farmers from exploitation from middlemen, the act has to be fully enforced
He noted that a previous law that had set the maximum packaging limit to 110kgs failed to fully take course because of corruption.