Kenya Tea Growers Association (KTGA) and the Kenya Tea Development Agency (KTDA) appeared before the Agriculture and Livestock Committee on Thursday as lawmakers continued their inquiry into tea pricing in the country.
During the meeting, KTGA CEO Lindah Oluoch explained to the committee, chaired by Tigania West MP John Mutunga, how tea prices are determined. She noted that one method involves producers submitting samples to brokers for presentation at scheduled auctions.
On the issue of value-chain costs and how they could be reduced, Oluoch highlighted labour, energy, and regulatory charges as the main contributors. Labour costs, she said, have risen by 42% over the past five years, while energy costs have increased by around 140% over the past decade. Regulatory charges have also grown due to changes in government policy.
Oluoch urged for a stable regulatory environment, saying it would allow tea producers to plan better, invest in market expansion, innovate products, and increase value addition. She proposed a moratorium on further increases in regulatory fees, aligning charges with service provision, and sector-specific exemptions for tea, citing the export dependence of the industry.
“These interventions can preserve the competitiveness of the sector, safeguard jobs, and protect national and county revenues from tea,” she said.
The KTDA team, led by Chairman Chege Kirundi, faced questions from the committee on several matters, including the balance of regional representation on the Board of Management, the quality of tea sourced from both East and West of the Rift, organoleptic versus scientific testing methods, operational costs at tea factories, and the potential installation of orthodox tea processing lines in factories.
The inquiry comes amid protests by tea farmers from Western Kenya over lower bonuses compared to their Eastern Kenya counterparts.
The committee has already visited factories in both regions and met with farmers to determine the cause of pay disparities. They have also visited the Mombasa Tea Auction and met with the East African Tea Trade Association (EATTA), Tea Board of Kenya (TBK), and Chai Trading Ltd.
The committee is expected to submit its report on the tea pricing inquiry by December 2, 2025, ahead of the House’s long recess.
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