Tight rules on duty-free sugar imports by Kebs

The Kenya Bureau of Standards has set tough rules for consignments of sugar entering the country under the State’s duty-free import window that was gazetted on 9 August, 2023, to help deal with a deficit in production locally.
The Cabinet last month sanctioned the extension of duty-free imports to help tame skyrocketing prices which hit a record of between KSh225 and KSh250 a kilogramme amid a biting shortage of the commodity.
And with the expected entry of large consignments of sugar, Kebs has set rules aimed at curbing abuse by rogue traders.
The standards regulator said all imported sugar with Certificates of Conformity (CoCs) will undergo mandatory re-inspection and testing at the port of entry free of charge.
“The sampling will take place in the presence of the importer or appointed agent and will be subjected to tests to verify compliance with the relevant requirements of the standards,” Kebs said in a notice.
According to the rules, all imported sugar consignments shipped from countries where Kebs has appointed inspection companies and are not accompanied by CoCs will be inspected upon arrival at a fee equivalent to five percent of the approved customs values.
All sugar imports originating from countries where no inspection agent has been contracted by Kebs will continue being subjected to destination inspection upon payment of an inspection fee equivalent to 0.6% of the approved customs value and testing fee (where applicable).
The Agriculture and Food Authority suspended the milling of sugar in July to allow factories to address the sugarcane shortage challenge.
There has been a sugarcane crisis in the larger Western region following neglect of the sugar industry by key stakeholders.
Commercial sugarcane production in Kenya is concentrated in the Western, Nyanza, Rift Valley, and Coastal regions. Over 300,000 farmers supply sugarcane to the millers.
More than 94% of the cane supply is by out-growers the difference being supplied by the nucleus estates owned by the various milling companies.
There are sixteen sugar mills in the country with a total processing capacity of 51,450 tonnes of cane per day but the capacity utilisation is about 56%, according to projections by the Agriculture Ministry.