TBK, measures officials impound weighing machines in Nyamira

Tea Board of Kenya in collaboration with officers of weights and measures have seized a faulty tea weighing scale from Tombe Tea Factory in Nyamira.

The director of compliance and surveillance at TBK, Samuel Njane, told the press during their surveillance at Gusii region that there have been numerous complaints countrywide from tea farmers over the dwindling weight of tea leaves from their farms which compelled them to conduct an impromptu surveillance exercise.

“Tea farmers from both the East and west of the Rift have logged complaints about factory clerks accusing them of manipulating tea leaves weighing scales which indicate less weight of tea leaves than the actual weight leading to huge economic loss to farmers,” he said.

“We have discovered that for sure some factory clerks are using faulty weighing scales whose weight readings have been tampered with and most tea farmers lose their tea weight at the tea buying centres, an area we want to deal with once and for all so that farmers can benefit from their hard labour of farming this cash crop,” added Njane.

He advised tea farmers to be on high alert and report any case where tea factory clerks are using faulty weighing scales at the tea buying centres to measure their tea leaves.

An officer from weights and measures headquarters in Nairobi, Erick Ndeke confirmed they collaborate with TBK and assist them to check the accuracy of tea weighing scales at various tea buying centres countrywide to ensure farmers are not swindled by crafty factory clerks of their rightful measure of their tea leaves.

“We have seized one faulty weighing scale from Tombe tea factory and we shall investigate it to know how it has been manipulated because its weight readings indicate lesser quantity of tea when measured against standard weights.”