CS Linturi to gazette Muguka and Miraa Pricing Committee amid county bans

Agriculture Cabinet Secretary Mithika Linturi has announced plans to gazette the Muguka and Miraa Pricing Committee in the wake of a ban on the stimulant in some counties.

Speaking to the press after a tea farmers' forum at the Rukuriri Tea Factory in Runyenjes, Embu County on Wednesday, CS Linturi emphasized his commitment to addressing the pricing concerns surrounding the crop.

He said the committee will be gazetted under the Crop Regulations Act of 2023 by the end of the week.

“By the end of this week, I will be gazetting the Muguka and Miraa Pricing Committee because the issue people are talking about is its cheapness such that it is being accessed by children,” said the minister.

He said the committee will give guidelines on how the stimulant will be sold, including regulating its prices.

Linturi said they will engage leaders of Kwale, Mombasa and Tana River counties, which have either banned or imposed punitive taxes on the crop for discussions.

“With Embu leaders, we were with President William Ruto at State House Nairobi and we agreed to hold a meeting to deliberate how muguka trade can go on because it is an authorised crop and we cannot run away from that,” said the CS, terming the levies as unreasonable.