Kenya’s Sugar output rises as prices reduce, KSB rreaks ISO leadership deadlock

The Kenya sugar board (KSB) Chief executive officer (C.E.O) Jude Chesire has been hailed for his coveted efforts to resolve the impending stalemate at the International sugar organization (ISO) council.

The resolution of the stated stalemate is a huge step to Kenya agricultural sector as it has seen the country’s sugar production for the last nine month rise to 690,521MT of sugar.

The 2026, sugar increase is a 56.7% increase from the same period last year, and it’s from this increase that retail prices for 1Kg and 2kgs of sugar has reduced by Ksh16 and Ksh.32 respectively.

The improved national sugar supply has been attributed to the spirited fight waged by the Kenya sugar board (C.E.O) Jude Chesire, who chairs the international sugar organization (ISO) council.

His input as the chairman will impact positively on Kenya as it advances its discussions on export markets, ethanol and investment in sugar processing.

Chesire is on recording for initiating consultations among member states after three volatile rounds of voting failed to produce a candidate with the required 2/3 majority for the executive director position.

Subsequently the ISO council agreed to have Devesh Devani of Mauritius serving the first four years followed by Eduardo Leão de Sousa of Brazil to succeed him the following four years.

The agreement follows inconclusive formal voting on September 22, 2026 and it places Kenya in a convening role within the international sugar industry at a time when its domestic production is growing and attention is turning to how that growth can be sustained.

According to the Kenya sugar board (C.E.O) Jude Chesire, cumulative sugar production has increased from 440,652MT between January and September 2025 to 690,521MT during the corresponding period in 2026.

Kenya projection stands at 900,000MT of sugar against a demand of 1,000,000MT compared to the 2025 production of 650,000MT.

That represents an additional 249,869MT of locally produced sugar entering the national supply circles.

Sugar millers in the country processed 7.76MTof sugarcane, compared with 4.97MTa year earlier, being an increase of 56.2%.

For consumers, the production gains coincided with lower retail prices compared with a year earlier, although the reduction was not uniform across outlets and counties.

The national average retail price stood at Ksh 155/kg in September 2026, against Ksh 171 in September 2025.

On average, two kilograms of packed sugar cost approximately Ksh 310, from Ksh 342 a year earlier.

The Ksh 32 difference offers some relief on a regularly purchased household commodity, particularly for families balancing food, transport and other daily expenses.

The national production increase was accompanied by a reduction in sugar imports.

Between January and September 2026, Kenya imported 251,690MT, against 364,486MT during the same period in 2025, being a decline of approximately (31%), or 112,796MT.

The sharpest reduction was in mill white and brown sugar, whose imports fell by about 71% to 65,845MT from 226,730MT.

Refined white sugar imports, however, increased to 158,006MT, from 137,756MT being an indication that the country’s supply challenge involves both the volume produced and the ability of local processors to meet demand for different sugar categories.

Local millers’ cumulative sales rose by 45.6% to 635,672MT, compared with 436,593MT in the first nine months of 2025.

Sugar stocks at the end of September this year stood at 70,773MT, against 14,033MT in 2025, providing a larger inventory buffer than at the same point last year.

For cane-growing communities, the increased annual processing volumes mean more cane has passed through factories.

Whether it translates into stronger household incomes will also depend on farmers’ production costs, harvesting arrangements, cane prices and payment timelines.

Against that domestic backdrop, Chesire’s ISO role gives Kenya an opportunity to engage producing and consuming countries on market access, processing technology and diversification.

His intervention in the leadership dispute illustrates the practical function of the chairmanship: bringing member states together when formal voting fails to secure agreement.

It also gives Kenya a channel through which to build relationships before any substantial exportable surplus emerges.

“By next year, Kenya will commence building surpluses for exports and requires such a platform to create new and vibrant markets,” Chesire said.

Kenya exported 315.57MT between January and September 2026, compared with 244.80MT during the corresponding period in 2025.

“Moving towards sustained exports would therefore require continued production growth, competitive costs and reliable domestic supply. International relationships could help identify buyers and their requirements translating to market access and sales” he added.

Also another key area of massive engagement is ethanol and biofuels, with (C.E.O) Chesire identifying Brazil as a country from which Kenya wants to learn from.

“Conversations towards biofuels and ethanol production are in the pipeline and at advanced stage,” he said, adding that Kenya has started the process and is seeking to benchmark with established producers.

As Kenyan factories continue to increase the volume of molasses production, relevance is substantial as the product can be processed into ethanol, offering an additional use for a by-product of sugar manufacturing.

Data indicates that the national molasses production reached 307,617MT (62.1%) between January and September, from 189,809MT in 2025.

Closing stocks in September 2026 rose to 65,384MT, compared with 12,735MT at the end of September 2025.

“The growing stocks give commercial significance to discussions about additional processing capacity and demand and the developing ethanol production would require investment, suitable technology and dependable markets.” he observed.

But his (Chesire’s) mediation at the ISO places Kenya in a better and stronger position to convene those conversations.

“The domestic figures establish why they matter: the country is producing considerably more sugar and molasses, importing less sugar overall and recording lower retail prices than a year earlier, while still facing the task of meeting its own requirements consistently”, he paused.