My simple formula to reap big from tea

Stephen Mogeni, the proprietor of Mogeni Tea Factory displays products the factory makes. The former civil servant and high school teacher set up the factory in 2013 soon after retiring. PHOTO | ELIZABETH OJINA | NMG

What you need to know:

  • Mogeni, 81, grows tea on 60 acres and before setting up the factory, he would sell his to Kipkebe Tea Factory and multinational companies.
  • Richard Onchari, the training manager, says they produce quality black tea, with the operations being fully automated.
  • The crushed leaves are then fed onto the perforated nets rollers for continuous fermentation process, which lasts 110 minutes.
  • Their challenges include high cost of energy, climatic changes and diminishing wood fuel.

Stretching from one valley to the other, the vast tea estates of Kerumbe in Nyamira County are a sight to behold.

The plantations employ hundreds of people and each morning, they are swarmed with the workers picking the tea leaves.

The leaves end up at several processors in the region, including Mogeni Tea Factory, which Seeds of Gold toured recently.

A strong aroma of processed tea welcomes us at the factory. Owner Stephen Mogeni, a longtime tea farmer, welcomes us to the facility.

The former civil servant and high school teacher set up the factory in 2013 soon after retiring.

“I established this factory to maximise on increased tea production. Tea farming is a major economic activity in this area but farmers used to take their produce far for processing.”

Mogeni, 81, grows tea on 60 acres and before setting up the factory, he would sell his to Kipkebe Tea Factory and multinational companies.

“I took a loan from Cooperative Bank in two phases to establish the business when I saw the opportunity. The first loan was Sh310 million and the second Sh 200 million. I constructed the building and shipped in machines from India.”
He started with 200 farmers who brought in their tea. “We opened our doors to farmers in August 2014 and we are registered under the East African Tea Trade Association.”

“Back then, I didn’t have money to pay them immediately but they had faith in me that I would pay them. The number went on increasing up to now I work with about 17,000 farmers in Nyamira, Kisii and parts of Homa Bay counties,” he added.

At the onset, production stood at 70,000kg a day but it has expanded to 200,000kg.

Richard Onchari, the training manager, says they produce quality black tea, with the operations being fully automated. “In a day we receive around 50 trucks loaded with the green leaves. The trucks start arriving at the plant at 12pm up to 5pm,” he says, adding they buy from farmers a kilo of leaves at Sh21.

Once delivered, the green leaves are weighed and inspected at withering station. The plant has 19 leaf count troughs, each takes 2,000kg of green leaves.

“The tea leaves are exposed to speed fans which ensure complete withering takes place. The leaves are then turned (fluffing process) for 16 hours to reduce the moisture content to 70 per cent,” he explains, noting the size of the rollers used to crush the tea determine the final grade of the tea.

PAID ON TIME AND GIVEN BONUSES

The crushed leaves are then fed onto the perforated nets rollers for continuous fermentation process, which lasts 110 minutes.

“During fermentation, the crushed green leaves turn to golden brown after undergoing biochemical reaction. Any slight interference during fermentation alters the quality, aroma and flavour of the tea,” says Onchari.

The fermented tea is fed into steam radiator heaters to achieve bright colour.

“It is passed through heaters at 1400C. We reduce the moisture content to almost 3.2 percent for 25 minutes. The dried tea is then sorted out to reduce the fibre content.”

The processed tea is packaged into 50kg packs made from aluminium foils. Then 80 per cent of processed tea is sold at the Mombasa auction.

Another 5 per cent in Middle East countries and Europe. The rest is packed into 250g, 100g and 50g and sold locally at Sh100, Sh50 and Sh30 respectively in major stores in Nyamira, Kisii, Kilgoris, Homa Bay and Kisumu.

Mogeni says there is competition from multinationals, but he terms it healthy.

“To beat the competitors, farmers are paid on time and they get bonus for the tea.”

Farmers in other regions are uprooting tea due to low prices, but Mogeni calls for patience.

“The tea prices do fluctuate and also feel the pinch when they decline. Tea is a long-term crop, therefore, farmers should be patient,” says Mr Mogeni.

Their challenges include high cost of energy, climatic changes and diminishing wood fuel.

“The cost of electricity is very high. Availability of firewood for fuel especially with the ongoing ban of logging threatens to paralyse our operations,” says Mogeni.

Kenya Tea Growers Association chief executive Apollo Kiarii says many multinational tea companies have experienced challenges transporting logs.

“We support the moratorium to stop the destruction of forests especially in water towers, the reason why we sustainably grow eucalyptus and cypress, among other trees. Tea companies should be given a leeway to harvest trees and transport the logs from their own satellite forests,” he says.

Mogeni plans to set up a branch of the company in Kisii County, noting green tea fetches high prices in the world market.