Tanzania launches tea auction to compete with regional giant Kenya
Tea is a way of life in East Africa. Rich soil, tropical climate makes African CTC teas ideal to sip after adding milk. Kenya, Malawi, Burundi, Uganda and Tanzania is among main tea growers in Africa. As TV4 Official instagram page had reported, Tanzania held its first ever tea auction on November 13 in Dar es Salaam, in an event that was aimed at transforming the tea industry in the country.
As a result, Tanzania has revealed plans to stop exporting its tea through the port of Mombasa in Kenya. The auction is expected to open markets for over 65 tonnes of tea at the ports of Dar es Salaam and Tanga in Tanzania. This move aimed at boosting farmers’ earnings and increasing the value of its tea on the global market.
Media outlet The Standard quoted Tea Board of Tanzania director general Mary Kipeja as saying that the tea auction would establish the country as a central hub for neighbouring tea-producing countries to trade their goods.
“Apart from minimising market costs, the tea auction is going to be a part and parcel of the implementation of the local content agenda, therefore empowering Tanzanians economically,” she said.
Kipeja added that the auction is going to significantly change the income of large and small-scale growers because costs incurred for tea transporting to Mombasa will now be used for strengthening and improving productivity.
The auction is expected to open markets for over 65 tons of tea at the ports of Dar es Salaam and Tanga in Tanzania.
Ten processors have already signed contracts with brokers with seven others being in the process of finalising agreement documents.
In recent years, Tanzania has recorded a decline in tea exports and earnings after raking in $12.2mn after exporting 7,875 tons in the 2022/23 financial year. During the 2020/21 financial year, the country exported 24,000 tons earning $39mn.
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References
- Main Source: https://www.intellinews.com/tanzania-launches-tea-auction-to-rival-that-of-regional-giant-kenya-301750/
