Coffee farmers in Bungoma county have appealed to the County government through the ministry of agriculture and co-operative to acquire marketing license to sell their coffee cherry directly to the market.
Famers led by Kimabole Coffee Society chairman Mr. Robert Sikulu Marango has said farmers are losing millions of money in hands of private marketers. He said the marketers are taking too long to sell their cherry after picking from the societies until the price drop at the international market.
“These marketers have been delaying our cherry with the intentions of giving us advance loans with high interest’ said Mr. Marango. Marango added that the said marketers have been also playing under hand games exaggerating milling losses and exchange their bags of clean coffee with the low quality one to milk dry farmers.
He further said that it’s only through county license that farmers will be able to sell their coffee cherry on a direct market and earn more money. “We have two counties that have already received the license to do business directly without involving private companies,” he said.