A section of tea farmers from Nandi county have unanimously rejected some sections of new tea laws saying it is going against their will.
In a consultative meeting with the Kenya Tea development Authority (KTDA) the farmers lamented that some clauses in this tea laws are against their will of what they had proposed thus requires some reviews before the implementation.
They cited that there are some issues that they agreed upon and rejected on this tea regulations and thus wants the government to reconsider looking into it for further amendments before the full implementation of the document.
“We need to be accorded the right to choose our directors ourselves not chosen by the government itself the way it has been doing, ” they demanded. The farmers also want their processed tea be sold directly to the international /global markets without passing through an auction in Mombasa adding that the new tea regulations are not favoring them at all as they are against their proposals and should be re-looked into accordingly.
They unanimously supported the creation of the tea research foundation and that of the tea board of Kenya saying it will assist them fully in some tea implementations.
On the other hand, the KTDA regional operations manager Jona Gitau revealed that they have heard what the farmers have highlighted concerning the tea regulations act and as a team would see how the proposed amendments can be looked into.