Agriculture Cabinet Secretary Mutahi Kagwe has directed tea factories to reject poor-quality green leaf as the government steps up efforts to improve the quality and value of Kenyan tea.
Kagwe said factories should only accept tea plucked to the recommended “two leaves and a bud” standard, warning that mixing poor-quality leaf with good produce lowers the value of the final product and cuts farmers’ earnings.
The CS spoke during a visit to Kapsara Tea Factory, where he handed over KSh44.6 million for the installation of a new withering plant.
The equipment will replace ageing machinery that consumes large amounts of electricity and is expected to improve the factory’s efficiency.
Kagwe said the government’s KSh7.1 billion tea factory modernisation programme would have little impact if factories continued processing low-quality green leaf.
He said Kenya needed to improve the quality of tea at the farm level while also investing in modern machinery, value addition and new markets.
“If we have agreed that quality tea is two leaves and a bud, then that is what must come to the factory,” Kagwe said.
“Moreover, farmers who manage to grow quality leaf should not suffer since their produce is being mixed with low-quality tea grown elsewhere.”
Better quality could translate to higher profits for farmers
According to Kagwe, efforts to improve tea quality were aimed at improving profits for farmers and not punishing them.
He gave an example of Momul Tea Factory, which recorded an improvement in tea value due to green-leaf quality improvement, from about $2 per kg to more than $3 per kg.
In his view, the above case clearly demonstrates why tea quality should be seen by farmers in terms of income earned and not just the amount of leaf supplied to factories.”
At Kapsara, Kagwe used samples of tea plucks to show the difference between quality green leaf and leaf that should not be accepted for processing.
He said better-quality tea would also help Kenya compete for higher-value markets as consumers increasingly demand orthodox, specialty and other value-added teas.
Government to modernise tea factories
The KSh7.1 billion modernisation programme is expected to replace old machinery in tea factories, improve energy efficiency and lower processing costs.
Kagwe said the investment should help factories produce higher-value products instead of relying heavily on traditional black tea.
He also called for Kenya to expand its tea markets beyond its traditional buyers, saying the country needs to maintain existing markets while finding new international customers.
The CS said the government was also using the tea levy to support activities such as price stabilisation, research, infrastructure, marketing, quality improvement and value addition.
He dismissed criticism of the levy, saying it is paid by buyers rather than farmers or tea factories.
Kagwe urged politicians opposed to the levy to avoid politicising the tea sector and instead focus on measures that can improve farmers’ incomes.
Senator Allan Chesang praised the government’s efforts to improve agriculture and said better roads in tea-growing areas would also help farmers and factories by making it easier to transport green leaf.
At Kapsara, Kagwe directed the factory’s management to ensure the KSh44.6 million allocation is used strictly for the intended project.
He also said farmer training and extension services would continue as the government pushes for better-quality tea from farms to factories.
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