Wednesday Oct 15, 2025
Wednesday Oct 15, 2025
Wednesday, 15 October 2025 00:27 - - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}
Kenyan President William Ruto has announced a plan to triple the country’s tea export revenue to over $ 2 billion by 2027, supported by new trade openings with China and a Government-led push to modernise processing facilities and enhance value addition.
According to China Daily, the initiative marks a strategic shift from bulk exports toward processing and diversification into higher-value orthodox teas, whole-leaf teas produced through traditional methods that command premium prices in international markets.
“In 2022, the average price per kilo of green leaf was $ 0.39. Today it has risen to $ 0.49. The total tea exports have grown from $ 1.06 billion to $ 1.4 billion last year. But we must go further,” Ruto said at a meeting with Kenya Tea Development Agency officials. He emphasised that Kenya must increase its output of processed and orthodox teas to maximise earnings.
Ruto noted that China has lifted all import tariffs on Kenyan tea, coffee, and other agricultural products, giving Kenyan exporters access to a vast consumer market of 1.4 billion people. The tariff removal is part of Beijing’s plan to extend zero-duty treatment to 53 African countries with which it maintains diplomatic ties.
The President said Kenya intends to strengthen cooperation with China, following recent high-level trade discussions in Nairobi. “We are going to bring more people from China to work with us to process our tea so that we keep the jobs here, keep the value here and export our finished products to China,” he said.
Kenya, one of the world’s top tea exporters, produces more than 500 million kilograms annually. Production of orthodox teas has already reached 13 million kilograms, but Ruto said the goal now is to unlock their full potential through technology upgrades and diversification.
He added that the Government has allocated 3.7 billion Kenyan shillings (about $ 28 million) to modernise tea factories, which are struggling with outdated machinery. A waiver of taxes on packaging materials for agricultural exports, including tea, will also help lower production costs and support value-added exports, he said.
