Kenya sees better coffee price

Kenya could earn 50 percent more for its coffee through direct sales than from auction, currently the sole export route, a leading tea and coffee firm said on Friday. For almost 70 years all Kenyan coffee has been sold in a central auction established in Nairobi in 1935. Kenyan laws require all coffee to be delivered to three existing marketing agents who offer it at the auction on behalf of the farmer. Kenya's farmers have long called for changes to allow them to negotiate with roasters abroad, saying so-called "direct sales" would fetch them higher prices.
The government in late 2004 said it would allow producers to bypass the auction and export directly, but this has not started because the rules on how to do it have not yet been issued.