Kenya Macadamia in 2026: Season Rules, Minimum Prices and Quality Rejections

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Published 24/10/2026 - 3 min read

Kenya Macadamia in 2026: Season Rules, Minimum Prices and Quality Rejections

Macadamia has been Kenya's fastest-growing cash crop and one of its most volatile. In the 2025/26 cycle, regulators, processors and traders spent the season arguing about the same two variables: when nuts may be harvested, and who may export them raw.

The seasonal closure and reopening

AFA announced a seasonal closure on the harvesting and trade of domestically produced macadamia from 1 December 2025, initially to 15 February 2026, with all value-chain players required to declare stock held from before the closure. AFA then reopened harvesting and trading from 1 February 2026 after a maturity surveillance exercise.

That surveillance found uneven maturity: most nuts in lower-altitude coffee-growing zones had reached physiological maturity, while nuts in higher-altitude tea-growing zones were largely immature. Processors argued the window opened too early and that immature nuts were bought up within two weeks, damaging Kenya's reputation with premium buyers. Expect a maturity-based closure every season and plan harvest labour around it.

The raw export ban

Section 43 of the Agriculture and Food Authority Act prohibits exporting raw macadamia without written approval from the Agriculture Cabinet Secretary. The ban has been lifted twice — most recently in late 2023 into 2024 — to clear a glut, and the current Cabinet Secretary has publicly said the window could be opened again if processors do not absorb the crop at the agreed minimum price of KSh 100 per kilogram.

For a grower, the practical consequence is that your buyer set is domestic processors most of the time, and that policy could change mid-season. Do not build a business plan on the export window opening.

Quality is where the money is lost

Numbers quoted by industry players in 2026: more than 60 per cent of nuts delivered to processors fail to meet global quality standards, only about 10 per cent qualify as premium grade, and processors need roughly 8 kilograms of raw nut to produce 1 kilogram of export-ready kernel. Brokers were reported buying at KSh 30 to KSh 50 per kilogram, below the KSh 100 minimum, and mixing lots.

Those figures are industry statements rather than audited statistics, but the direction is consistent: maturity at harvest, farm-gate grading and kernel recovery determine your realised price more than the headline rate does.

The records that change your outcome

1. Maturity and harvest log — date, block, variety (grafted versus ungrafted), nut drop observation.
2. Delivery and grading sheet — weight, grade, moisture where measured, kernel recovery from your own test.
3. Offer comparison — price per kilogram, deductions, rejection terms, payment days and who pays transport, all on the same grade basis.
4. Stock declaration — quantities held before and during any closure period, with dates.
5. Rejection file — sample retained, weight, stated reason, photographs, and any independent analysis, so a dispute is arguable rather than verbal.

Grafted varieties and organically certified nut generally attract a premium, and the processors' association has said price should reflect that. Ask your buyer to state the grade definitions in writing and price against those definitions.

Last verified: 24 October 2026. Rules, fees, tariffs and market-access decisions change. Confirm the current position with the named authority (or your buyer and clearing agent) before committing money. This is business-planning guidance, not legal, tax, agronomic or export-compliance advice.

Sources

• Business Daily: AFA lifts macadamia harvesting ban after maturity survey
• TNX Africa: harvest quality concerns and kernel recovery figures
• Daily Nation: farmers press for the raw-nut export window
• USDA GAIN: Kenya seasonal restrictions on macadamia harvesting and exports
• The Star: processors on below-minimum broker offers

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