Kenya eyes Africa and China in tea marketing

What you need to know:

  • Deputy President William Ruto said there are plans by the government to set up a fertiliser factory in Eldoret town to help reduce the cost of importing the input.
  • Mr Kenyatta said tea prices have drastically dropped in the world market which has seen farmers miss out on bonuses this year.

The government will launch an aggressive tea marketing strategy to cope with falling global prices of the crop, President Uhuru Kenyatta said Friday.

The President said Kenya will seek other consumers of the beverage in Africa and China to save farmers from losses caused by market over-supply.

“There is still an open market for tea in Africa and the Asian continents which is yet to be fully exploited,” said Mr Kenyatta.

The President spoke when he launched Kiptabo Tea Factory in Nandi County.

Mr Kenyatta said tea prices have drastically dropped in the world market which has seen farmers miss out on bonuses this year.

“We need to do value-addition to our tea produce to create more jobs and expand the economy instead of selling the produce at the Mombasa auction,” said the President.

He said tea plantations will be set up in the Mau and Embobut forests as part of the process of conserving the water towers.

Mr Kenyatta said the government will provide farmers with subsidised fertilisers for tea, coffee and sugarcane.

Set up fertiliser plant

Deputy President William Ruto said there are plans by the government to set up a fertiliser factory in Eldoret town to help reduce the cost of importing the input.

He said the government will import fertilisers on time for the next planting season to cushion farmers against delays.

“Value-addition of tea will create employment and expand the economy of the country,” said Mr Ruto.

Agriculture and Livestock Cabinet Secretary Felix Koskei said that the country earned Sh114 billion from the sale of 494 million kilogrammes of tea last year.