A farmer picking tea.
Over 680,000 small-scale tea growers supplying green leaf to 77 factories managed by the Kenya Tea Development Agency (KTDA) are anxiously awaiting the release of this year’s annual bonus in two weeks.
The bonus—officially referred to as second payment—is one of the most anticipated events in the tea calendar across the 21 tea-growing counties.
A schedule released by KTDA indicates that factories will announce their bonus rates between September 22 and 26. The first announcements will come from Mogogsiek, Kobel, Boito, Kapset, Rorok, Kapkoros, Tirgaga, Olenguruine, and Motigo in the West of Rift region on September 22.
The final announcements will be made on September 26 by factories in Mt Kenya, including Rukuriri, Mungania, Kathangariri, Nduti, Ikumbi, Njunu, Gacharage, Makomboki, Ngere, Ragati, Iriaini, Chinga, Gitugi and Gathuti.
In the financial year ending June 30, 2024, KTDA paid small-scale farmers a record Sh89.29 billion for green leaf deliveries—Sh21.5 billion more than the Sh67.7 billion paid in 2023. Of this, Sh56.68 billion went to bonuses, Sh32.61 billion to monthly payments and Sh1.04 billion to dividends for 54 factories—the highest dividend payout in KTDA’s history.
KTDA Holdings Chairperson Chege Kirundi assured farmers that despite political turmoil disrupting traditional tea markets, the industry remains resilient.
“There is hope in the tea industry, and there is no reason anybody should doubt that. We will overcome the challenges and make it profitable,” Mr Kirundi said in Bomet.
“The onus is on farmers to deliver high-quality leaves to their factories. We at KTDA will steer the industry in the right direction to ensure profitability,” he added.
The tea industry has been grappling with a glut at the Mombasa Tea Auction, where more than 100 million tonnes of processed tea remained unsold for two years following price caps introduced under the Tea Act, 2020.
The government has since suspended some provisions of the Act to allow factories to export directly.
To boost earnings, KTDA and government agencies are pushing diversification into specialty teas, especially orthodox varieties with growing demand in Japan, Russia, China, Germany, Iran, France and the Middle East.
Traditionally, Kenya’s black CTC tea has been shipped to Pakistan, the United Kingdom, Egypt, Sudan, Kazakhstan, and Poland. KTDA is now targeting new markets in China, India, Korea, Australia, Switzerland, South Africa, Ghana, Nigeria and Morocco.
