1) Four counties in Kenya produced over 92,500 metric tons of green grams in 2018, valued between 6475-5550 million Kenyan shillings, due to good harvests. 2) However, farmers face difficulties finding reliable buyers as markets are depressed and Asian export options have reduced. Kenya also imports green grams despite having production that exceeds domestic consumption. 3) Potential export markets for Kenyan green grams include India, China, and others, but India's import quota restrictions in 2018 created market uncertainty. Investment is needed in production, storage, grading and value addition to improve competitiveness and market access.

1. AVCD DTC
GREEN GRAMS MARKETING CONSULTATIVE
MEETING
SA2
By Gabriel Kitetu
Farm Africa AVCD DTC project coordinator
June 19, 2018

2. QUANTITY AND VALUE OF PRODUCE
No. County Production volumes as at
June, 2018 (MT)
Value (Ksh) @Ksh70
per Kg
Value (Ksh) @Ksh60
per kg
1. Kitui 23,000 1610 M 1380 M
2. Tharaka Nithi 14,500 1015 M 870 M
3. Makueni 45,000 3150 M 2700 M
4. Meru 10,000 700 M 600 M
Total 92,500 6475 M 5550 M

3. PROBLEM STATEMENT
1) There is an unprecedented bumper crop of green grams in key
AVCD production Counties; Kitui, Tharaka Nithi, Makueni and Meru
– This has resulted from AVCD DTC project interventions, other
development partners, County Governments coupled with good
rains experienced across the country
2) Farmers do not see a reliable off-taker and markets are currently
depressed with international trends of reduced Asian trading
options.

4. MARKET ANALYSIS
Consumption v/s Production;
 EAC; production trends are higher than consumption for green grams.
 Kenya; MOALF Economic Review of Agriculture 2015 estimated national consumption of green
grams at 127,130 MT in 2014 in Kenya. Kenya’s annual domestic supply (average 103,234 MT)
currently falls significantly below consumption and trade requirement.
 Kenya is a key market within the EAC for green gram consumption. Of the 143,552 MT consumed in
2014, Kenya accounted for 96% of this consumption and consumption patterns indicate a continued
dominance in domestic consumption
 Kenya; Net importer of grain within EAC; to cover the deficit, offer attractive market within the region
and stronger currency

5. Acknowledgment: The data used for the analysis has been obtained from; IAM, Government of Kenya, Ministry of Agriculture, Livestock & Fisheries, Government of Tanzania,
Ministry of Trade and Industry, EAGC, RATIN, Farm Gain Uganda, FEWS NET, & Betta Grains.

6. IMPORTANT NOTE;
Kenyan producers have the opportunity to meet
domestic demand rather than importing;
Need to improve on;
Storage and sell later- spread as per the domestic market demand
Key focus on quality assurance and post-harvest handling is
of prime importance to penetrate high value markets.

7. EXPORT MARKET
• Main export market; India, China, Japan, Saudi Arabia, and Pakistan
• India’s dependency on imports (both seasonal and based on total
consumption) was expected to grow from 2010
• In 2010, this was estimated to be around 32 million MT. However, India’s
2018/2019 quota restriction to 5 million MT and has created uncertainty in
the Kenya market.
• Further, any fluctuation in India’s markets tends to have an effect on global
prices.
http://www.gafspfund.org/sites/gafspfund.org/files/Documents/5.%20Kenya_strategy.pdf

8. WHY KENYA EXPORT GG?
Kenya has increased export in line with rising global product
demand. Green grams are, with recent average performance, the
3rd most important legume export after (1) kidney beans & white
pea beans and (2) pigeon peas.

9. LONG TERM MARKETING CONSIDERATIONS
Production and aggregation:
• Investment in production technologies to increase efficiency and cost effectiveness to
compete with local producers (Uganda, Tanzania and Ethiopia) and international producers
(Canada and Australia) on the global market.
• Particularly, engage with seed production companies to increase availability of quality seed
as a main variable of increasing productivity and stimulating the market with reliable
production.
• Infrastructure investments in storage and grading systems to improve quality and longevity
of produce.

10. CONT….
Value addition:
• Investment in key areas to enable value addition activities to increase
domestic market value and further increase the storage capacity of goods.
• Ensuring complementary government investment in infrastructure (e.g. road
systems and electricity) to ensure the efficient utilization of value addition
activities.

11. CONT…..
Trade systems:
• Credit access
• Contract farming
• Strength market institutions

12. Possible marketing strategies:
1) Work with the NCPB to invest in key production areas to buy green
grams.
2) Establish a working partnership with AID Agencies
3) To explore export marketing opportunities through the relevant county &
national govt depts.
4) Protect the green gram farmers from imports

13. AVAILABLE MARKET OPTIONS
1. Continued immediate sales on spot market.
2. Development of storage strategies to hold for price
changes.
3. Engagement with public sector off-takers facilitated by
county operators.

14. A little push in the right
direction
can make a big difference.