Kiambu — Kiambu residents will dig deeper into their pockets as prices of sugar rise.

A spot check by KNA on Thursday across the supermarkets in Kiambu town revealed a significant hike in sugar prices compared to last week.

At Kamindi Supermarket Kabras sugar was going for Sh200 for one kg and Sh400 for two kilos while at Urban Mart, Spiffy and clean shelf supermarkets, the prices were a bit higher.

A Kiambu retail trader Mwangi Kamau stated that he used to buy a 50kgs bag of local sugar at Sh7, 800 but now they are buying it at Sh10, 000 forcing them to sell a kg and 2kgs at Sh200 and Sh400 respectively.

"We are paying for the shop retail license in accordance with county regulations, but there are vendors selling the same sugar on the streets and in open markets who are not paying for those licenses; as a result, customers will choose to purchase the roadside sugar which is being sold at a cheaper price," he regretted.

The residents blamed the government for the hike with one of them, Paul Kimani saying: "We will continue buying sugar even if they will sell it at 300 shillings, we have no power over them."

Another resident however said he could not afford to buy sugar. "I stopped buying sugar and nowadays take sugarless tea (usually known as ndubia). I will only go back to buying the commodity when the government reduces its prices," he said.

Wholesalers in the country have said the increase in prices is not only being contributed by shortage in the market but also the duty free sugar imports which were allowed into the country at the beginning of the year.

According to the Sugar Directorate data, the total sugar produced in February was 67,451 MT down from the previous month's 81,488MT. - Kna