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Written by Nathaniel Tama
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Friday, 02 April 2010 09:29 |
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 Tea was introduced into Kenya from India by a European settler G. W. Caine in the 19th century. Over the years Kenya has become the worlds largest producer and exporter of black tea, with an annual production of about 300 million kilograms. Kenya is also the second largest exporter of tea worldwide. About 60% of the total crop is produced by small holder growers. They process and market their crop through their own management agency, the Kenya Tea Development Agency (KTDA) Ltd, which is the largest single producer of tea in the world. The balance of 40% is produced on large scale estates which are managed by major multinational firms associated with tea production around the Globe.
Kenya prides itself as the producer of the best quality black tea in the world. The tea is hand picked (the upper two leaves and a bud are hand-plucked). The said leaves are then processed under stringent conditions in tea factories at source to ensure maximum quality.
75% of Kenyas tea is sold at the international auction in the coastal city of Mombasa, which is Kenyas second largest city and the main port.
For more information on Kenyan tea, please visit the following websites:
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Last Updated on Sunday, 04 April 2010 07:39 |
