Kenya seeks to expand coffee and tea export to spur foreign exchange earnings
Principal Secretary, State Department of Agriculture Dr Kipronoh Ronoh addressing the media after a consultative meeting with KTDA West of Rift Small Scale Tea Factory Directors (Nandi, Bomet, Kericho and Kisii Counties) in Kericho County. He is flanked by Tea Board of Kenya CEO Mr Willy Mutai (left) and Kenya Tea Development Authority Deputy Chairman Mr Eric Chepkwony.
The government is seeking markets for tea and coffee in Arab and Asian countries to spur exports and foreign exchange earnings.
Iran, Pakistan and India are the countries that the government is focusing on for tea exports with marketing teams expected to be sent out in January 2025.
Agriculture Principal Secretary Dr Paul Ronoh said the government was seeking new markets and was keen on assisting players to add value to the produce before it is exported.
Farmers earned a total of Sh62.89 billion from their produce in 2022 according to statistics from Kenya Tea Development Agency (KTDA) with Sh25.78 billion being for green leaf supply and Sh37.11 being bonus pay to the producers.
In 2023, the farmers earned Sh67.70 billion from the supply of the produce with monthly green leaf fetching Sh23.55 billion and Sh44.15 billion in bonuses. The official total earnings for the farmers in 2024, though it has been paid, has not been released by the agency.
Small-scale farmers
Consumption of tea has been very low among Kenyans with the latest statistics from Kenya Tea Board indicating it stood at eight percent in a sector that has 680,000 small-scale farmers.
The push for the export of tea and local consumption is expected to address the issues of high production and a glut in the market with the inability to offload the 100,000 metric tons of the produce at the Mombasa Tea Auction for the last two years.
Russia, Japan, China, Nigeria, India, Korea, Switzerland, South Africa, Germany, Iran, France, Australia and those in the Middle East and Eastern Europe are the emerging markets for Kenyan tea with a focus on Orthodox tea which is in high demand.
Traditional markets for Kenya Black Cut, Tear and Curl (CTC) tea are the United Kingdom, Sudan, Poland, Kazakhstan and Egypt.
Dr Ronoh was speaking on Friday in Kericho town during a consultative meeting with Kenya Tea Development Agency (KTDA) zonal directors from the West of Rift – Nandi, Kericho, Kisii, Nyamira, Bomet, Narok and Nakuru counties.
The PS who was accompanied by the KTDA vice chairman Erick Chepkwony, Kenya Tea Board Chief Executive Officer Willy Bett, and Agricultural Development Cooperation Managing Director Director George Kubai among others said the government was encouraging Kenyans to consume the locally produced tea and coffee in large quantities.
“We have directed the Tea Board of Kenya to regulate the mushrooming of private tea factories and ensure that all the players adhere to high standards of production at the farm level – two leaves and a bud – so as to avoid cases of rejection of the produce on the auction floor” Dr Ronoh said.
Dr Ronoh said “As a government, we are assisting the players in the industry to enhance quality production and putting in place marketing strategies that target non-traditional markets mostly in Africa, Asia and Arab countries.
Bomet County through a deal crafted by Governor Hillary Barchok made an attempt three years ago to secure a market for its tea, but the move seems not to have taken off besides the pomp and colour that accompanied it.
Initially, then Cabinet Secretary for Agriculture Peter Munya took potshots at the deal saying it would be possible to trade with Iran, but former President Uhuru Kenyatta’s administration later explored the business opportunities in the Western Asian country.
Iran has had trade embargoes imposed by America and they can not deal with the dollar which is a global medium of exchange.
The PS said the Sh 2 billion refunds to farmers by KTDA for fertilizer subsidy that was detected, and which was initially marked for January 5, 2025 will not be paid in December 2024 along with the green leave supplies for November to the agency.
“The cost of a 50 kilogram of bag of NPK chemically compounded fertilizer this year was Sh 3,400, produced through competitive bidding” A statement issued on December 5, 2024.
As a result of the Sh 2 billion subsidy from the national government has reduced the cost of fertilizer to Sh 2,500 per bag.
Speaking later in the company of Kericho Governor Eric Mutai during a meeting with coffee farmers supplying their produce to Torsogek cooperative society in Ainamoi constituency, said the government was seeking to expand the export market for the produce.
“Farmers are currently paid Sh 100 per kilogram of coffee and the efforts to get regular and expanded foreign markets will lead to an increase of the prices of the produce and better earnings for the farmers” Dr Ronoh said.
Kipkelion District Cooperative Union Society is exporting produce from 67 cooperative societies from Nandi, Kericho, Bomet, Nyamira to South Korea with an initial shipping out of 134.4 metric tons in October 2022 through Good Beans worth, worth USD 908,150.
It was the first major breakthrough on direct exports by a cooperative society in Kenya under the coffee reforms initiated by former President Uhuru Kenyatta's administration.
The government is seeking to assist players in the industry to add value to the produce before exporting it to earn more from the venture, and satisfy particular market demands.
