Nairobi: The Nandi county government has unveiled bold reforms in the coffee sector, aimed at protecting farmers from exploitation, restoring order in the value chain and positioning local coffee as a premium global brand. The County Executive for Agriculture and Cooperative Development, Dr. Kiplimo Arap Lagat, announced nine directives touching on marketing, licensing, cooperative governance, and compliance with international standards.
According to Kenya News Agency, among the key measures is the outlawing of all cherry trading outside licensed cooperatives and estates, terming the practice a form of theft that denies farmers their rightful earnings. Enforcement will be spearheaded by County Coffee Inspectors in collaboration with the National Police Service and Agriculture and Food Authority (AFA) officers. The County has also moved to enforce the Nandi Coffee Nursery Management and Licensing Guidelines (2025) to eliminate fake seedlings, directing farmers to source planting materials exclusively from licensed nurseries and cooperatives.
Dr. Lagat said the measures are meant to protect farmer incomes, strengthen cooperative governance, curb cherry theft, and ensure Nandi Coffee achieves global competitiveness. Other reforms include operationalizing the Nandi Coffee Mill (NCM) in Tinderet, establishing SACCOs in all 30 wards to improve access to credit, ensuring compliance with the upcoming EU Deforestation Regulations (EUDR), and launching a Geographical Indication (GI) Roadmap to brand and protect Nandi Coffee as a premium global product.
To enhance transparency, the County will also publish and regularly update a list of all licensed and compliant entities in the sector. Local farmers have welcomed the reforms, saying this marks a turning point for the troubled sector. David Kiptoo, a farmer from Mosoriot, expressed that cherry hawking has been a significant issue, with traders buying cherries cheaply at night and reselling at a profit, leaving farmers without fair compensation.
Esther Chebet, a grower from Aldai, praised the new nursery rules, noting that certified nurseries will provide quality plants and better produce, addressing the problem of fake seedlings leading to low yields. Others, like Josephat Ngetich, a cooperative member in Tinderet, see the global branding efforts as a potential transformation for livelihoods, with the possibility of earning what their product is truly worth.
With these measures, Nandi County is setting a new benchmark for coffee sector reforms in the country, giving farmers renewed hope of higher incomes, stronger cooperatives, and greater access to premium markets.