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Agriculture Cabinet Secretary Mithika Linturi says the government has not put in place mechanisms to deal with the effects of fake fertiliser.

Appearing before the National Assembly’s Departmental Committee on Agriculture and Livestock, Linturi acknowledged that the fertiliser presented before the lawmakers was fake, but said that it was never supplied under the government’s subsidy program.

“There is no mechanism in place to deal with the effects of the alleged fake fertiliser. This country has for a long time used DAP fertiliser, which has the ability to acidify soil. Within government and in realization of this, we have developed the National Soil and Cultural Management policy to address the issues of restoration and how to manage our soils properly. The current (subsidy) program that we are running does not have DAP as part of the fertilizer we are distributing,” Linturi said.

“We give fertiliser that has the ability to heal our soils that have for a long time been damaged by DAP. The whole idea is to ensure that we gradually fertilise our soils and reduce the acid in our soils.”

According to Linturi, the government is issuing semi-organic fertilizer, which is 50 per cent chemical and 50 per cent organic.

“We will not allow fraudsters to hide under the government’s subsidized fertilizer programme. Over the decades, the soil health of our agricultural lands has decreased due to wrong use or overuse of fertilizer hence turning the soil acidic. To reverse this, the government has been keen on availing semi-organic fertilizer, which is 50 per cent chemical and 50 per cent organic,” he added.

“As the Cabinet Secretary for Agriculture, I remain open to oversight and will mobilise the involved entities within my ministry to get to the bottom of the reported substandard fertilizer cases and give a reprieve to our affected farmers.”

Ruto on fake fertiliser

This comes amid reports of fake fertiliser in the market, with President William Ruto promising action against those behind the distribution to farmers.

Ruto spoke on Monday when he made an impromptu visit at the Eldoret National Cereals and Produce Board Depot in Uasin Gishu County.

Last week, Government Spokesperson Isaac Mwaura revealed that the Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) has started looking into the fake fertiliser scam.

Mwaura’s revelations come after reports of a massive supply of fake farm inputs in the country, and he promised that those found guilty will face the law.

“In the past few weeks, complaints of fake fertiliser being in circulation in some parts of the country have dominated our conversations around the economy. The program further aims to cushion smallholder farmers from fertilizer price fluctuations, ensuring that they produce competitively and contribute to the alleviation of the high cost of living,” Mwaura said in a statement.

“The Directorate of Criminal Investigations has taken up the matter, and I want to assure you that those found culpable of supplying not only fertiliser but also any other form of fake farm inputs shall be apprehended and prosecuted.”

“I also wish to clarify, that the other type of fertiliser that has been flagged out as fake is a GPC product sold commercially under an agency arrangement outside the NCPB system as a soil conditioner and not fertilizer.”

While defending the government over the allegations of supply of fake products, the former nominated senator said prior investigations have revealed the fake products were not supplied under the government’s subsidy programme.