Background

Nuts and Oil Crops Directorate is an arm of Agriculture and Food Authority (AFA) mandated to develop, promote and regulate the nuts and oil crops industry in Kenya. Before the enactment of Agriculture and Food Authority Act 2013 and Crops Act 2013, the role of developing, promoting and regulating the nuts and oil crops subsector was largely amorphous. The Kenya Coconut Development Authority was tasked with the responsibility of developing, promoting and regulating the coconut industry in Kenya. 

Though this set up to some extent exploited the potential in the nuts and oil crops subsector, the desired results were not adequately achieved. It is on this basis that the government initiated reforms in the Agricultural sector that gave rise to AFA and its underlying Directorates. AFA and by extension its Directorates was incepted to spearhead the development of scheduled crops as delineated in the First Schedule of Crops Act 2013. This was envisaged would negate for instance the amorphous way the nuts and oil crops subsector was being developed and regulated. The Nuts and Oil Crops Directorate assumed the mandate of the hitherto Kenya Coconut Development Authority. Other than coconut, this Directorate was added additional nuts and oil crops such as Macadamia, Cashew nuts, Ground nuts, Sunflower, Sesame Oil , Rape seed , Safflower, Jojoba, Castor bean and Linseed.