Imported sugar at Mombasa port. The sugar will cushion country for next five months. [Photo/geeskaafrika.com]
The sugar imports in the nine months to September rose by 376 percent to 933,844 tonnes as compared to 219,118 tonnes imported last year within the same period.
The high imports mark the first time in five years since the country imported high volumes of sugar that is mend to cushion and protect the consumers from the exploitation of high prices arising from the shortage of local sugar.
According to the reports by the sugar directorate, the country imported huge volumes of sugar mainly from Brazil to sustain the countries needs with the expectation of maintaining the stable prices for the next five months.
“The increase in table sugar imports is attributed to amplified shortfall due to low local sugar production in the country,” said the directorate in a report.
The regulator noted that the traders and millers imported 300, 000 tonnes of sugar in August alone as they took the advantage of the duty waiver on sugar imports which expired on midnight of August 31.
Kenya produces 600,000 tonnes of sugar annually but the case has been different this year considering that the total production dropped by 49 per cent at the beginning of the year due to the drought that led to the sugar cane shortage.