Farmers demand lifting of ban as macadamia nuts rot in stores

Title: Macadamia farmers push back against raw nut export ban as stockpiles mount

Thousands of macadamia farmers across Kenya's central highlands are calling for the government to repeal a ban on the export of raw macadamia nuts, warning that unsold stockpiles are deteriorating in storage facilities while growers face mounting financial losses.

The prohibition, introduced to encourage domestic value addition and protect local processors, has drawn fierce resistance from smallholder farmers who say the policy disproportionately burdens growers rather than the processors it was designed to benefit. Farmers argue that local processing capacity remains insufficient to absorb the full harvest, leaving them with no viable market outlet during peak production periods.

Kenya is Africa's largest producer of macadamia nuts, with an estimated 100,000 smallholder farmers cultivating the crop across counties including Kirinyaga, Murang'a, Embu, and Meru. The industry generates hundreds of millions of shillings annually and has become a critical income source for households transitioning away from traditional cash crops such as coffee and tea.

Industry stakeholders say the processing sector, while growing, still lacks the throughput to handle national output efficiently, particularly after bumper harvests. When processors slow purchasing or lower prices, farmers have historically relied on the export market as a pressure valve. With that option closed, they say prices paid at the farm gate have dropped sharply.

The Agriculture and Food Authority, which oversees the macadamia sector, has defended the ban as a long-term investment in Kenya's manufacturing capacity. However, farmers and some county governments are pressing for a phased or conditional lifting of restrictions, arguing that allowing controlled raw exports during surplus periods would stabilise incomes without undermining the processing industry's development trajectory.