February 2025 C...

By Etherly Barasa, Kenya Sugar Board (Nzoia CTU)

INTRODUCTION

This report analyzes February 2025 NIR data from various regions across the country. This data is critical for our transition to the new payment mode, and its high quality and reliability are essential for achieving our objectives.

While challenges experienced by some CTU’s in data collection prevented complete regional sample coverage, the data obtained still provides valuable insights for certain areas.

ANALYSED PARAMETERS

Pol- the sucrose content in the cane juice

Brix- Total soluble solids in the cane juice

Moisture- the amount of water present in the cane at the time of analysis

Fibre- the non-sucrose organic material in the cane

It is important to note that these parameters may be influenced by various factors, including harvesting practices, transportation, and weather conditions, which can affect the results either positively or negatively.

A total of 315 samples were analysed across all regions for the reporting month. The regions are represented by the CTUs as follows:

- Western Region: (Butali CTU, Nzoia CTU, Mumias CTU, and West Kenya CTU)

- Nyanza Region: (Kibos CTU, Chemelil CTU, and Muhoroni CTU)

- South Nyanza Region: (Sony CTU, Transmara CTU, and Sukari CTU)

- Coast Region: (Kwale CTU)

The report includes average data from samples analysed across the country during the reporting month of February2025in the table below.

CHALLENGES

• Factory Closures: Several regions could not report data due to operational shutdowns and maintenance at sugar factories.
• CTU-Mill Constraints: Specific Cane Testing Units faced unavoidable constraints with their respective mills, preventing data reporting.
• CTU Operational Failures: Some CTUs experienced equipment breakdowns and trucks lacked access to the cane ramp, hindering data collection.
• Poor Cane Quality: Analysed samples contained significant extraneous material (trash, mud), and a general drop in measured parameters suggested harvesting of young immature cane.

 RECOMMENDATIONS

• Strategic dialogue: Establish a multi-stakeholder forum involving Ministry, Millers, Farmers and Kenya Sugar Board to identify and resolve root causes of factory closures and recurrent mill constraints. Stakeholders should be educated on best practices for cane harvesting, loading, and transportation to improve data quality and consistency.
• Preventive maintenance and spares: Develop a rapid response mechanism for equipment breakdowns and ensure adequate stocking of essential spare parts at CTU or regional depots.  Train CTU personnel in basic troubleshooting and minor repairs.
• Intensify farmer sensitization campaigns on best harvesting practices (detrashing, proper topping, and maturity indicators), explicitly linking clean, mature cane delivery to higher payments under the new mode.

CONCLUSION

 Analysing the February 2025 NIR data has provided us with a clear picture of our current operational landscape, reinforcing the critical role of high-quality data for the new payment model. While we've faced challenges, including regional data gaps and extraneous materials in samples, the steady improvements from continuous model calibration are highly encouraging.