President William Ruto’s sugar reforms are facing a test in the Western region, with farmers complaining that the changes have yet to resolve the problems that plague the sector.
A damning Senate report on the sugar sector shows farmers are still battling a myriad of challenges, including delayed payments, low cane prices, and expensive farm inputs.
The report by the Senate Agriculture Committee on the challenges facing sugarcane farmers in the Nzoia sugar belt shows farmers are facing harvesting days, alleged corruption, weak representation and competition from imported sugar.
“Increasing corporate dominance and market concentration by large private millers had weakened competition, suppressed independent local transport contractors and eroded the collective bargaining power of smallholder outgrower organisations,” the report states.
Ruto has repeatedly presented the leasing of state-owned sugar factories to private operators, debt restructuring and implementation of the Sugar Act, 2024 as major steps towards reviving the industry.
“In the sugar sector, our factories are returning to productivity. Farmers are now paid within seven days of delivery of cane, receive yearly bonuses and workers are paid on time," Ruto said when he toured Nzoia Sugar Company last month.
However, the Senate report, filed after months of public inquiry including engagement with the farmers and other key stakeholders in the sector paints a different picture.
The committee chaired by Bungoma Senator David Wakoli shows that the reforms have not yet translated into better incomes and more reliable services on the ground.
The Kenya Sugarcane Growers Association and Kenya National Federation of Sugarcane Farmers warned that farmers remain exposed to an unsustainable pricing system, inadequate inputs and weak representation.
They said the average cane yield in the Nzoia region stands at about 49.71 tonnes per hectare, against a potential of between 85 and 100 tonnes if farmers receive adequate fertiliser support.
The farmers also claimed that between 2014 and 2024, growers delivered about 74 million tonnes of cane while suffering an average loss of Sh615 per tonne, translating into cumulative losses of about Sh46 billion.
“The current sugarcane pricing formula is commercially unsustainable, with prices consistently falling below the cost of production,” the farmer representatives told the committee.
They called for an independent arbitrator to resolve the long-running dispute over cane pricing.
The leasing of government-owned factories was expected to improve efficiency and ensure farmers are paid within seven days of delivering cane.
However, farmers said delayed payments remain a major problem.
The Nzoia Sugarcane Farmers Association told senators that payment delays had affected farmers’ ability to pay workers, buy fertiliser, maintain farms and meet household expenses.
The association also raised concerns over irregular harvesting schedules, saying mature cane often remains in farms for too long.
“Delayed settlement of payments following cane delivery has adversely affected farmers’ ability to pay workers, maintain farms, purchase fertilisers and farm inputs, and support their households,” the association said.
Farmers also complained about the new harvesting permit system, alleging that it has created room for brokers and middlemen to interfere with harvesting.
The Senate committee said it found evidence of a practice known as “helicopter harvesting”, in which middlemen allegedly exploit farmers by demanding illegal levies or bribes before mature cane can be harvested.
“Evidence presented indicated that farmers were required to pay illegal levies or bribes before being permitted to harvest mature cane, contrary to the law and principles of fair trade,” the report shows.
The committee said the shift from structured outgrower management systems to what it described as an unregulated commercial harvesting permit regime had created a network of middlemen.
It further reported allegations of manipulation of cane tonnage, unlawful deductions and irregularities at miller-controlled weighbridges.
“There was credible evidence of widespread irregularities at miller-controlled weighbridges that undermined transparency and fairness in the determination of farmers' earnings,” the committee said.
Poor roads emerged as another major threat to farmers in the sugar belt.
The committee said rural feeder roads deteriorate significantly during rainy seasons, making it difficult to transport harvested cane to factories.
As a result, cane remains in farms, loses weight and deteriorates in quality.
“Evidence indicated that several fatal road accidents involving cane haulage vehicles had occurred, with affected families receiving little or no compensation,” the report says.
Farmers blamed the poor performance on expensive fertiliser, fuel and labour, inadequate extension services and limited access to quality seed cane.
Farmers also blamed sugar imports for depressing domestic prices.
The Kenya Sugar Board acknowledged that Kenya continues to face a major production deficit, with annual demand estimated at 1.1 million to 1.2 million tonnes.
However, the board warned that uncontrolled imports could suppress cane prices and discourage investment by local farmers.
The board reported that national sugar production fell from 815,454 tonnes in 2024 to 611,576 tonnes in 2025.
“Uncontrolled sugar smuggling and periodic surges in duty-free sugar imports had distorted the domestic sugar market, depressed local sugar prices and undermined the competitiveness of local millers and farmers,” the report says.
The committee attributed the decline to cane shortages, premature harvesting, adverse weather and disruptions associated with restructuring and leasing state-owned factories.
The committee also noted that domestic sugar production declined by 27.2 per cent in 2025, leading to the temporary closure of seven regional sugar mills for about three months.
It recommended the creation of a multi-agency task force to investigate the state of sugar farming in the Nzoia Sugar Belt.
It also wants sugar imports suspended unless justified by proven domestic shortages and called for stronger action against illegal imports.
INSTANT ANALYSIS
For farmers in Western and Nyanza, therefore, the real measure of President William Ruto’s sugar reforms may not be the number of factories leased or laws enacted, but whether growers finally receive fair prices, timely payments, reliable harvesting, affordable inputs and roads that get their cane to the mill without losses.
