The existence of an enormous gap between producers and consumers has been a bedeviling factor against the development of the producers as well as the reception of quality goods by the consumers. When producers like agripreneurs strategize of farm-to-fork model of business, they are at times incognizant of the gaping challenges mostly occasioned by side-sellers who inflate the prices of commodities at the peril of the farmer who gains little or nothing from the price hikes.
This is also to the disadvantage of the consumer who ends up procuring expensive yet not-so-quality products that have remained in the market for long ostensibly waiting to fetch higher prices. The remedy to this lies with farmers being empowered to supply their commodities directly to their consumers. Farmers ought to also be facilitated to add value to their farm produce whether it is through processing, packaging or market linkages. Companies need to come up with innovations of designing these linkages in order to cushion producers against the probabilities of produce loss upon harvesting.
The adverse effects of climate change globally have not been fair to farmers and the least that can happen to keep them afloat as they seek to improve their livelihoods and create food security in line with the Sustainable Development Goal number two is to guarantee them of an income from their noble industry.
An example of a business that assists farmers with marketing and supplying of their farm produce to retailers in Kenya is Girays Limited. By being an aggregator, the institution has managed to assist hundreds of farmers by ensuring that the supply chain runs smoothly and both ends of this chain get to benefit. This is normally made possible by contracting farmers who become confident that they have a market for their produce and that the producers and the consumers are cushioned against price fluctuations.
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Further, initiatives such as the upcoming Kiambu County Harvest Festival that seeks to provide a platform where farmers will exhibit their fresh and traceable produce as well as sell directly to consumers at the Nairobi Farmers Market will also go a long way towards supporting farmers. Powered by the EU and Danida-funded AgriBiz Programme in conjunction with Kiambu County Government and Nairobi Farmers Market, the initiative’s sole ideology is to bridge the gap between the farmers within the programme and the end consumers in a venture that is expected to be replicated across the country especially in the counties where KCIC has set up AgriBiz business incubation hubs.
Since agriculture and trade are devolved functions, county governments need work closely with allied partners to continue supporting farmers to trade their produce. By creating the requisite enabling environment, agriculture is likely to become cool again and to reclaim its glory of being the immutable main economic driver in the country.
A redacted version of this article was first published in The Standard Newspaper in Kenya by Solomon
