AFA licenses 152 coffee dealers, dismisses monopoly claims

The Agriculture and Food Authority (AFA) has licensed 152 coffee dealers for the 2025/26 financial year, affirming that no single company will be allowed to control coffee exports from Kenya.

In a statement on Tuesday, AFA Director General Bruno Linyiru said the authority only recognises dealers who have been gazetted as required by law.

“During the registration process, dealers must be gazetted through a Kenya Gazette Notice, which also gives the public a 14-day period to submit any objection to the grant of a license,” the statement read.

The licensing process, according to the regulator, is anchored in the Crops Act, 2013, and the Crops (Coffee) (General) Regulations, 2019, which make it mandatory for all individuals or companies intending to export coffee to obtain a license and be gazetted.

So far, 152 dealers have been cleared under three categories: 126 Coffee Buyers, 15 Coffee Warehousemen and 11 Coffee Agents.

AFA emphasised that the process is open and transparent, pushing back against claims that a monopoly could be created in the export chain.

“No single company or group of companies has been or will be given exclusive rights to export coffee. AFA follows a transparent licensing procedure whereby applicants are vetted, approved and subsequently gazetted before being authorised to export coffee,” the statement noted.

The authority further cautioned that anyone operating outside the licensing framework would be breaking the law.

“Any person or entity engaging in coffee exports without proper licensing and gazettement shall be in violation of the law and will face appropriate legal action,” AFA warned.

The regulator also highlighted sections of the Crops (Coffee) (General) Regulations, 2019, particularly regulations 7, 8, 9 and 10, which outline how dealers are registered and licensed, as well as the specific types of licenses issued by both the Authority and county governments.