KK Fresh Produce Exporters, one of the leading local exporters of fresh fruits and chilli to the international market, has been ordered to pay Shs 191.8 million to East African Packing Solutions, following a dispute over an unpaid debt.
Justice Stephen Mubiru ruled that KK Fresh Produce had failed to meet the legal requirements needed for a stay of execution pending appeal and described the intended appeal as “frivolous and devoid of a reasonable likelihood of success”.
The dispute stemmed from a commercial relationship between the two companies in which East African Packing Solutions supplied packaging materials and related goods to KK Fresh Produce.
In 2024, East African Packing Solutions sued KK Fresh Produce seeking recovery of about Shs191.8 million together with interest and costs.
KK Fresh Produce admitted that the two companies had traded for some time and that goods worth about Shs 455.7 million had been supplied. However, the company argued that it had already paid about Shs 453.7 million and that after reconciliation of accounts, only about Shs 1.9 million remained unpaid.
KK Fresh Produce then applied for unconditional leave to appear and defend the suit.
However, on July 14, 2025, the High Court dismissed that application and entered summary judgment against KK Fresh Produce for the full amount of about Shs191.8 million, plus interest at 10 per cent per year and legal costs.
After the decree was issued, East African Packing Solutions began execution proceedings to recover the money.
KK Fresh Produce then returned to court seeking orders stopping the execution as it prepared to appeal in the Court of Appeal.
KK Fresh Produce was represented by lawyers from SK Sebowa & Co. Advocates, while East African Packing Solutions was represented by the law firm Waymo Advocates.
Lawyers for KK Fresh Produce argued that execution would cripple the company’s operations.
The company told the court that paying the Shs 191 million before the appeal was heard would trigger collateral commercial loss, business paralysis, and destruction that could not be reversed even if the appeal later succeeded.
The lawyers argued that execution would affect cash flow, banking arrangements, stock movement, supplier credit, and customer confidence.
They also argued that customers, financiers, and suppliers would view the company as financially distressed if its assets were attached.
KK Fresh Produce even offered to deposit part of the money as security.
But lawyers for East African Packing Solutions opposed the application and argued that the intended appeal had been filed out of time and was therefore incompetent.
They told the court that judgment had been delivered on July 14, 2025, but the notice of appeal was only filed on March 13, 2026, nearly seven months late.
They also argued that KK Fresh Produce had failed to prove that it would suffer substantial loss if execution proceeded.
They maintained that the decretal amount was a monetary award capable of refund if the appeal ever succeeded.
In a strongly worded ruling, Justice Mubiru said: “There must be in place a valid and timely notice of appeal before any application for a stay of execution can be entertained.”
He said an incompetent notice of appeal filed out of time without the necessary leave of court is not a valid basis for a stay of execution.
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Justice Mubiru said KK Fresh Produce’s notice of appeal had been filed six months and three weeks out of time.
He said the KK Fresh Produce had failed to provide credible evidence challenging East African Packing Solutions’ accounting records.
“When a creditor presents documentary evidence, and the debtor fails to provide evidence to contradict it, the debtor’s unsupported denial is generally insufficient to raise a genuine issue for trial,” he said.
On the question of business losses, Justice Mubiru dismissed KK Fresh Produce’s claims as too general.
“The court will not accept vague generic claims of loss of business opportunities, commercial disruption, interruption of trade, reputational damage, strain with financiers and counterparts, and internal operational dislocation,” he ruled.
He also faulted the company for merely claiming it could provide security without proving its financial standing.
Justice Mubiru noted that KK Fresh Produce’s debt to East African Packing Solutions had been outstanding for more than four years and said granting the stay would unfairly deny the respondent the fruits of its judgment.
He dismissed the application, meaning KK Fresh Produce will now have to pay East African Packing Solutions Shs 191.8 million.
