Traders buy macadamia nuts from farmers and sell them again to processors. They can be broken down into different roles: 1) small collecting agents, who buy small quantities directly from farmers; 2) collecting agents, who buy from small agents and number between 2,000 and 3,000, according to some sector stakeholders. The collecting agents engage in trade as independent agents.
Traders also conduct the task of gathering small amounts of crop and collecting them in volumes that are large enough for processors to work with. In the current value chain setting, processors are not in a position to engage in direct trade with all macadamia producers.
Apart from adding value to macadamia by processing it, processors also act as traders, in that they aggregate small amounts of crop through their buying shops. Most macadamia processors have their own lorries (or rental lorries) to transport macadamia from farms or buying stores to the processing plants. Once processed, these processors contract the services of logistics companies to transport ready-to-export macadamia to the Port of Mombasa. Freight service providers include DHL, RHS Freight Services and Kuehne plus Nagel. Larger processors have their own fleet to transport macadamia to its port of export.
