Kenya marketing boards fact-file

  

Date Posted: 12/19/2012 2:25:18 PM

Posted By: sashoo  Membership Level: Silver  Total Points: 382

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What are marketing boards?

These are trading organizations set up by government to purchase agricultural produce from formers and sell them to processors like unga limited etc and consumers; examples of marketing boards are national cereals and produce board, pyrethrum board of Kenya, coffee board of Kenya, Tea board of Kenya.

Functions of marketing boards
1. Buying produce:-
Marketing board purchase produce from farmers at reasonable prices so as to encourage them.
2. Collecting and storing produce:-
After collecting produce from the farmers they store them in their large stores called viols.
3. They give various assistance to farmers like:-
a. Fertilizers, pesticides, farming tools at a reduced price.
b. They give better quality seeds at or below cost.
c. They give bags and other packing materials at cost.
d. They give loans and advances to farmers to enable them to expand their farming activities.
4. Research and development:-
Large marketing boards have their own research centres where they carry tests of how to improve the quality seeds at or below cost.
5. Control of production:-
Marketing boards have a responsibility of giving advice to farmers on what to produce and to what extent they have to produce. The main aim of this is to avoid: overproduction and under production of agricultural produce.
6. Selling produce:-
Marketing boards sell produce from farmers to local processors like unga Ltd. as well as auctioning it to outsiders.

Types of marketing boards
i) Produce marketing boards:-
They have the power to exercise control over the production of a wide range of commodities like maize, beans, wheat etc examples of these marketing boards are national cereal and produce board.
ii) Export commodity board:-
These types of marketing board only deal with selling of commodities abroad or to other countries. They normally deal with one particular commodity only. Examples of these boards include coffee board of Kenya, pyrethrum board

of Kenya.
iii) Specialized industry boards:-
These types of marketing boards have control over production and marketing of a single / one commodity examples of these marketing boards include daily board of Kenya, Kenya meat commission?
iv) Advisory marketing board:-
These types of marketing boards are mainly concerned with;-
a) Carrying out research into agricultural problem
b) Advising formers on which seed to grow or cattle to rear.
c) Provide extension officers who go round the farms and monitor activities of farmers hence they are able to give technical advice of how farmers should maintain their farms so as to achieve high yield.

NB: During harvest seasons marketing boards purchase produce from farmers at a higher price than the market ruling price. This situation is normally referred to as buffer. The aim of taking this decision is to give incentive to farmers such that they are not demoralized by very low market prices.

During off peak seasons or when there is a little commodities price will hike group hence customers purchase these commodities at very high prices. The marketing boards mostly national cereal and produce board, sell the commodities that they had stocked to consumers at a reasonable or reduced price than the market ruling price. Such a situation is referred to as stabilization fund. The main aim is to avoid private individuals who aim at exploiting the common citizen by setting very high prices for the commodities.

Problems faced by marketing boards
1. Marketing boards pay dearly for receiving produce from farmers. This happens during harvest season when they offer high prices for the farmers. They also encounter negative consequences by offering very low prices to consumers during off pick seasons.
2. Surplus output as a result of overproduction:- they dispose them at a very low price.
3. Political problem:- marketing boards are controlled by the government although they should be self governing.

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