Kenya has launched its first specialty orthodox tea auction in the port city of Mombasa as part of ongoing efforts to diversify exports and tap into shifting global markets.
“We have decided to diversify markets by increasing capacity to produce orthodox teas in order to capture the ever-changing global market,” Mutahi Kagwe, cabinet secretary in the Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock Development, said in Mombasa during the launch of the inaugural orthodox tea auction.
To improve specialty tea production and exports, Kenya has licensed 22 orthodox manufacturers and hopes to double the number to 42 by 2027, Kagwe said. “We aim to grow installed orthodox capacity from 15 million kilos in 2024 to 200 million kilos by 2030.”
He added that Kenya has established a tea quality assurance laboratory in Mombasa to offer real-time quality advisory, product testing, and food-safety certification.
According to Kagwe, the Mombasa Tea Auction, which is the world’s largest black tea auction by volume, is going online internationally to help increase transparency, improve farmer returns, and ensure Kenya remains globally competitive.
At the inaugural orthodox tea auction, 2,925 packages, equivalent to 91,798 kilograms, were traded for the first time. Kagwe assured buyers that Kenyan farmers have the capacity to meet the rising global demand for specialty teas.
Kenya produced 7.51 million kilograms of orthodox tea in 2024, of which 5 million kilograms were exported, according to Kagwe. Enditem
Source: Xinhua
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