Most pyrethrum farmers in Nakuru county have continued to abandon it leading to a collapse of the venture.
The farmers are now pointing fingers at cartels that invaded the sector acting as middle men between the government and the farmers leading to delayed payments and lack of bonuses.
In Molo sub-county, which was Nakuru’s agricultural hub for the crop owing to the favourable weather conditions, most farms that were once blooming with the beauty of the crop have now been replaced by subsistence farming.
"Before pyrethrum farming was invaded by greedy individuals, I had grown the crop for over ten years. I started the farming in 1979 before those cartels invaded the sub sector in 1992. We never received our bonuses and our money was diverted to the pockets of other individuals,” Sarah Wathakwu, pyrethrum farmers’ spokesperson in the area narrated.
Most of the farmers have now ventured into growing other crops including cabbages and potatoes.
“I have been farming the crop for more than ten years. However, we are yet to receive the payments for the produce we delivered in 2012 and 2013 and we have not heard from the Pyrethrum Board of Kenya (PBK). Governor Kinuthia Mbugua also promised to revive the industry in addition to offering free seedlings to the farmers but none of this has bore fruits,” James Mugweru, a farmer in Bahati sub-county said.
They are now calling upon the county government to expedite the process to revive the sector.
According to John Kimani, a former director of PBK, the crop which once ranked sixth among the foreign exchange earners has been neglected.
“Two to three decades ago, Kenya used to export up to 18,000 metric tons of pyrethrum and was the World’s leading producer. Today, we barely export 700 metric tons leaving the farmers frustrated,” Kimani said.