By Witness Radio Team.
Machakos, Kenya — Kenya’s High Court in Machakos will deliver a landmark ruling today, Thursday, November 27, 2025, at 9 EAT, in a case that could redefine seed rights, food sovereignty, and the survival of millions of smallholder farmers who depend on indigenous seed systems in Kenya.
The ruling comes after 15 smallholder farmers from the Seed Savers Network filed a constitutional petition in 2022, claiming that the Seeds and Plant Varieties Act (SPVA) and the Seeds and Plant Varieties (Seeds) Regulations, 2016, have restrictive provisions that violate fundamental rights protected by Kenya’s Constitution.
The ruling could determine whether smallholder farmers can save, trade, and sell indigenous seeds, directly affecting their livelihoods and cultural food practices, which should resonate with the audience’s sense of justice and support for farmers.
The petitioners claim that sharing or selling farm-saved seed that is not registered or certified by the Kenya Plant Health Inspectorate Service (KEPHIS) puts smallholder farmers, who provide the majority of Kenya’s food, at risk of being criminalized.
They claim that existing legislation compels farmers to use a costly, exclusive, and incompatible formal seed system, conflicting with the varied, adaptable, and culturally significant varieties protected under farmer-managed seed systems (FMSS).
The petitioners claimed that the SPVA and related regulations violate Article 11(3)(b) of the Kenyan constitution by failing to acknowledge and safeguard indigenous seed systems and cultural heritage, Article 2(6) by violating international treaties on the protection of genetic resources that Kenya has ratified, Article 43(1)(c) by violating the right to sufficient food and freedom from hunger, and Article 27 by discriminating against smallholder farmers by favoring corporate seed breeders.
The SPVA was first passed in 1972, but significant revisions in 2012 and 2016 brought Kenya’s legal system into compliance with the UPOV 1991 convention, enhancing commercial breeders’ intellectual property rights and extending KEPHIS’s regulatory requirements.
All seeds, whether native or not, must be certified before being sold or traded under these reforms. The petitioners contend that these prices farmers out of the seed system and render traditional seed practices unlawful.
The case comes amid rising concern about seed laws, particularly in East Africa. Recently, the EAC Seed and Plant Varieties draft Bill, 2025, which was formally introduced to the East African Legislative Assembly (EALA) for its consideration in June 2025 and aims to harmonize seed regulations across the East African Community, has been criticized for favoring commercial seed companies.
The draft Bill, according to its supporters, intends to establish standard procedures for seed certification and the protection of plant varieties within the Community; to provide for related matters; and to coordinate the evaluation, release, and registration of plant varieties among Partner States.
Such bills aim to commercialize seeds, which is likely to disenfranchise smallholder farmers, and the local farmers claim that the standards are difficult to meet.
Despite the push toward commercial seed regulation, smallholder farmers produce over 70% of Kenya’s food and more than 80% of the World’s food, according to the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO). Experts warn that laws restricting FMSS will erode agrobiodiversity, increase dependence on commercial seed corporations, and diminish community resilience in the face of climate change.
Farmers, lawyers, and civil society organizations believe that the outcome of this court case is crucial because it will protect indigenous seeds, support food sovereignty, and ensure farmers can save, share, and sell seeds, safeguarding their future and rights.
The ruling is expected to be delivered at 9 EAT. Witness Radio will keep you posted on the case update.
