KENYA: The Kenyan government is worried about the misconduct of some Chinese firms, numbered three, who are involved in smuggling thousand of metric tons of raw macadamia nuts to China so that they can export them from there. They are now taking measures to overcome this malpractice by intervening in macadamia industry.
The task force discovered some of these companies do not meet the standards required by Horticulture Crops Development Authority and have been exporting raw macadamia illegally after the government banned its export four years ago. In 2009, then Agriculture Minister William Ruto declared the exportation of raw macadamia nuts illegal. This was aimed at encouraging capacity of local processors, create jobs and enable farmers benefit more. Based on the findings, the taskforce recommended a committee to vet all processors and weed out those buying the nuts during off seasons and those involved in smuggling.
The taskforce was formed after a lobby of local nuts processors wrote a letter to Agriculture Cabinet Secretary Felix Koskei accusing the Chinese companies of flouting the Government ban by smuggling out unprocessed nuts. In the letter, the Nut Processors Association of Kenya (NUTPAK) said unless the ministry stopped the smuggling of the nuts, the sector would collapse. The letter dated April 28 and signed by NUTPAK head of secretariat Charles Mungai said even after the ban four years ago, smuggling had continued unabated. They complained the situation had deteriorated despite the fact that the association together with relevant State organs had arrested and prosecuted four cases of smuggling of the nuts, all involving Chinese firms.
