Officers from the Anti Counterfeit Authority (ACA) yesterday busted a major syndicate of individuals selling counterfeit fertiliser in the sprawling Kariokor area of Starehe Sub County.

The officers acting on a tip-off, yesterday ambushed and apprehended a trader suspected of packaging and supplying fertiliser illegally.

The officers also seized over 19, 000 bags branded Yara in the process.

Led by Regional Manager, ACA Nairobi, Abdi Abikar, the officers busted on the suspect and his workers assembling bags belonging to Yara Fertilisers Limited Kenya ready for the exercise.

“I came here with my team at around 9 a.m, and in these stalls, we have found about 19,105 bags belonging to Yara, that have been used before to repackage fake fertilizers which have been sold to the farmers,” he told journalists covering the raid in a shanty behind the Kariokor War Cemetery.

He said the sale of fake fertiliser has been found to be one of the reasons the country is paying dearly for food insecurity.

Abikar said that from interrogations, his team was able to establish that the suspected person with others who were not present at the time of the arrest, purchased the precious product from Athi River, before repackaging it in Yara branded bags of various sizes ranging from 10kg, 25kg to 50kg.

Counterfeit products

He explained that if you sell counterfeit fertilizers to the farmers, it means that the production will be low. “And that’s why we came to raid these places and we have bags of 50kg, 25kg and 10kg belonging to Yara brands, a well-known brand and that’s one of our mandates, protecting the brand owners’ Intellectual Property Rights (IPR), “ he said.

Abikar said that with the rainy season around the corner, and farmers in maize farming zones in the North Rift and Western Kenya preparing, the ACA has noticed that a lot of fertiliser in the market is counterfeited.

In this particular raid, he said that similar crackdowns on fake fertilizer in Kitale, Bungoma, Kakamega and Kisii were reported as they were able to follow some leads back to Nairobi.

“So the raids in those areas I have mentioned led us back to Nairobi, and that’s why we are here,” he said.

Suspected ringleader

Authorities are currently investigating a suspected ringleader of the syndicate, with legal proceedings expected to follow.

“The raid marks a significant milestone in ACA’s continuous efforts to combat counterfeiting and safeguard Kenya’s agricultural sector,” Abikar stated.

A representative from the trademark-owning company, who wished to remain anonymous, expressed appreciation for the government’s proactive intervention.

“Counterfeit products erode farmer trust and damage the credibility of genuine brands.

We remain committed to offering the best products in the market and appreciate the government’s support in eradicating these illegal activities,” they stated.

If these 19,000 counterfeit bags had entered the market as filled 50kg fertilizer bags, they would have amounted to 9.5 million kg of counterfeit fertilizer, defrauding unsuspecting farmers.

At an estimated market value of Sh3,000 per bag, this represents a potential loss of Sh57 million, posing a significant financial and agricultural risk.

Subsequently, ACA is urging all stakeholders, including farmers, distributors, and consumers, to remain vigilant and report any suspicious activities concerning counterfeit agricultural products.

“Counterfeiting not only affects productivity and livelihoods but also poses a serious threat to national food security so now is the peak time,” he said.

After this particular operation, Abikar said that the Agency is going to carry out more raids, and hopes to seize more people who are dealing with the fake fertilizers.  

Starehe Deputy County Commissioner, John Kisang said his office will be more vigilant following this raid to ensure that such illegal activities are nipped at the bud.

“So we are opening our eyes to make sure our farmers get genuine fertilizers and are going to use it to give us food during this rainy season,” he said.

Kisang said that last year similar cases were identified elsewhere in the country, but when it had been already packaged. “But this time round, they are not yet packaged, meaning we are now killing it at the source,” he said.

A section of the 19,000 counterfeit fertiliser bags seized by the Anti-Counterfeit Authority during a police raid in Nairobi yesterday. PHOTO/BERNARD MALONZA