PREMIUM Senate report exposes burden crushing sugar farmers Farmers have lost billions of shillings to delayed payments, rising production costs and a sugar industry that is plagues by inefficiencies and exploitation. Companies Just now Listen

Data from the Kenya Sugar Board showed that national sugar production declined from 815,454 metric tonnes in 2024 to 611,576 metric tonnes in 2025, with the decline attributed to cane shortages, premature harvesting of immature cane, adverse weather conditions and disruptions arising from the restructuring and leasing of state-owned sugar factories.“Cane poaching and harvesting of immature cane continue to undermine mill operations, restrictive zoning provisions limit farmer choice, and the Sugar Pricing Committee has not adequately safeguarded farmer incomes amidst rising input costs,” reads the report.

The committee, in its recommendations, now wants the Ministry of Agriculture, in consultation with the Kenya Sugar Board and other relevant stakeholders, to reform the sugarcane pricing framework to reflect production costs and by-product revenues, guarantee timely payment to farmers, establish statutory thresholds for regulating sugar imports as well as safeguard land designated for sugarcane production with a view to protecting the interests of sugarcane farmers.