NAIROBI, Kenya, Dec 21 – The second consignment of fertilizer for Kenya Tea Development Agency (KTDA) farmers has been flagged off at the Mombasa Port for onward distribution to factories.
The consignment comprises over 900,000 bags totaling 45,232 metric tons of fertilizer that KTDA imported for its farmers.
In October this year, the agency also received 956, 000 (47, 800 metric tons) of fertilizer.
“Since we have made it clear that we want to increase productivity so that we can get more yield, the Government has stepped in to subsidize the cost of fertilizer, farmers are now buying fertilizer at KES 2,500 per bag,” KTDA Holdings Chairman Enos Njeru said.
The NPK 26:5:5 chemically compounded fertilizer was procured directly from Russia and will be bagged at the port before distribution to the farmers.
Fertilizer costs have been rising in the country due to the growing cost of natural gas (a key component in the manufacture of NPK chemically compounded fertilizer) and unfavorable exchange rates, among other factors.
KTDA procures fertilizer in bulk for more than 650,000 small-scale tea farmers, who are the shareholders of its managed factories, through competitive international bidding.
The fertilizer is then distributed to the farmers through their respective factory companies. This arrangement enables small-scale tea farmers to access high-quality fertilizer at the most competitive price and in a reliable manner.
The KTDA fertilizer credit scheme enables farmers to pay in installments for the fertilizer they have ordered for use on their farm. These payments are made over several months to ease the farmer’s burden on the purchase of fertilizer, which is a major input cost in tea farming.
