The fallout between Kenya and Somalia over maritime border has adversely affected the Miraa business in the country. Somali was number one consumer of Kenyan Miraa.
But Ethiopia has invaded the Miraa market in Somali with their different varieties proving to be a delicacy to the people of Somali.
This has crippled in fact it has disabled the Kenyan Market which was flourishing.
Kenya is scouting for new buyers for miraa in Djibouti and Mozambique due to stiff competition.
The efforts to secure new markets come after the stimulant was banned in the UK and other European countries, dealing a blow to farmers in miraa-growing areas. In Kenya, a number of counties have also threatened to ban it.
In a letter to the Foreign Affairs ministry, the Miraa Taskforce Report implementation committee chairman, Kello Harsama, said the team was keen on recovering the lost international markets.
“The task force is organising to visit Ethiopia, Djibouti and Mozambique to meet ministries of Agriculture, import phytosanitary departments, the Chambers of Commerce, importers and traders in order to understand the requirements for imports of miraa and ways to improve supply of quality produce,” the letter states.
According to Kimathi Munjuri, who is part of the delegation to Ethiopia, the team has met traders association to understand the competition structure.
“We have met traders associations to understand their approach. Next we will engage both the federal and regional government representatives to find out what roles the government plays to promote khat trade,” Mr Munjuri said.
He noted that while Ethiopia grew more than 50 varieties, none was comparable to the miraa grown in Meru.