Bʏ Mᴀʀʏ Mᴡᴇɴᴅᴇ
November 27, 2025
Kenya’s horticulture industry is taking decisive steps to revive its vegetable, herb, and spice exports, which have faced challenges in recent years. Speaking to Floriculture Magazine, Okisegere Ojepat, CEO of the Fresh Produce Consortium of Kenya (FPC-Kenya) and chairman of the National Horticultural Committee, highlighted the urgent need to revive Kenya’s horticulture exports, citing a decline in earnings attributed to factors such as stricter EU regulations and logistical disruptions.
“The exports of our vegetables, herbs, and spices, particularly high-value crops, have been declining for the last five years,” Mr. Ojepat stated. “This decline has been driven by a combination of factors, including stringent Maximum Residue Limits (MRLs), pesticide residue notifications in key markets, logistical costs, and compliance burdens in meeting international standards. As an industry, we have sometimes neglected our core role in agriculture, focusing on other areas instead. Today, we aim to reverse that trend.”
In the first quarter of 2025, earnings from horticulture exports shrank by 11.2 percent to 40 billion shillings (about $309 million), despite an increase in export volume to 216,429 tonnes from 206,714 tonnes in the same period in 2024. Notably, fresh vegetable exports halved in value from 50.9 billion shillings in 2023 to 23.4 billion in 2024 due to tough EU pesticide residue rules. Meanwhile, Kenya’s spice exports, including ginger and turmeric, were valued at over $17 million in 2023, with growing interest in European markets fueling new opportunities. The government and industry players are focused on enhancing quality, compliance, and market diversification to boost Kenya’s presence in global horticultural trade. This renewed focus aims to leverage duty-free access to the EU market under the Economic Partnership Agreement and improve the resilience and competitiveness of Kenya’s horticulture sector.
The committee highlighted the urgent need for technical capacity improvement and continuous recruitment of skilled personnel to support the sector. Minor crops, particularly herbs and certain spices, have been underserved due to limited plant protection product availability and insufficient investment in efficacy trials. “The herbs industry, for example, has not had dedicated plant protection solutions because production volumes were considered too small for agrochemical companies to invest in,” Mr. Ojepat explained. “We have now agreed to form a minor crops working group to explore group-based technical solutions and labor extensions to support these high-demand crops.”
Key Resolutions for Industry Revival
During the meeting, the committee agreed on several strategic measures aimed at boosting compliance, quality, and market access:
- Traceability and Auditable Systems: All growers and exporters are required to implement traceable systems that are auditable to ensure regulatory compliance.
- Technical Capacity Enhancement: Growers and exporters must employ or engage credible technical professionals to advise on plant protection, nutrition, and best agricultural practices.
- Self-Assessment for Compliance: Companies will use a self-assessment tool to evaluate their compliance levels. Results will be shared quarterly with regulators to build industry-wide data that can inform trade engagements, particularly with the UK and EU.
- Unified Branding and Marketing: A Kenyan horticultural brand will be developed and promoted internationally. The industry will collaborate with Kenyan missions, embassies, and high commissions to strengthen global visibility and recognition of Kenyan produce.
- Regulatory Accountability: Non-compliant actors will be flagged and called out to maintain high standards across the industry. Joint inspections by government agencies will be harmonized to reduce redundancy and costs.
- Access to Standards and Guidelines: The committee will engage KEPHIS to provide free access to the recently revised Kenyan standards, while good practice guides for key crops like beans and avocado will be distributed to members.
- Improved Logistics and Market Systems: A logistics working group will address competitiveness in road, rail, and air transport, aiming to reduce the cost of doing business and streamline operations.
- Training and Capacity Building: Fresh Produce Consortium, in collaboration with KALRO, has launched a training academy to educate technical personnel in pesticides, plant nutrition, post-harvest handling, food safety, and other horticultural practices. New exporters will undergo comprehensive training on branding, packaging, and market readiness before entering international markets.
Tapping into Rising Global Demand
The committee noted that global demand for herbs, spices, and high-quality vegetables is increasing, particularly in Europe and the Middle East. “Our chilli and herb markets are expanding rapidly, and as the global population grows, the pressure on arable land increases. We must adopt technologies that rejuvenate soil and increase production efficiency to meet this demand sustainably,” Mr. Ojepat said.
A key focus of the committee is revitalizing trade relationships, especially with the UK post-Brexit. Direct engagement with UK authorities will activate trade agreements and facilitate smoother market access for Kenyan produce.
Towards a Sustainable and Job-Creating Industry
“The horticulture sector is one of the few industries that can create significant employment quickly and sustainably,” Mr. Ojepat emphasized. “By enhancing compliance, technical capacity, branding, and logistics, we aim to increase exports, create more jobs, and ensure long-term sustainability for Kenyan growers.”
The National Horticultural Committee will hold quarterly meetings to monitor progress, coordinate industry actions, and share updates on compliance, trade, and market developments. These measures collectively signal a strategic and united effort to restore Kenya’s position as a leading supplier of high-quality vegetables, herbs, and spices on the global stage.