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The serene Nandi Bears Club in Nandi County, Kenya, became the hub of an enlightening gathering as the 1st African Specialty Tea Conference and the inaugural African Tea Expo took place.

The event, organised by the Purple and Specialty Tea Association of Kenya (PSTAK), ran from May 22-23, 2024, attracting tea farmers and experts from across the continent, including 30 farmers from Uganda.

The two-day expo aimed to unlock the potential of specialty teas for African farmers and introduce them to high-profit alternatives.

Specialty teas from Europe and Asia. (All Photos by Nelson Mandela Muhoozi)

Expert insights on specialty teas

At the heart of the discussions were insights from international tea experts and testers who emphasized the transformative potential of specialty teas.

Tay Bernadine, the founding director of the European Specialty Tea Association, highlighted the shift in consumer preferences towards health, wellness, sustainability, and ethical production.

"Today’s customer is health and wellness conscious, sustainability and ethics focused, culturally tuned, and committed to quality," she said.

Bernadine added that the essence of specialty tea lies in the unique stories behind it: "People don’t actually buy tea; they buy an experience". She urged farmers to focus on the five Ps: Plant, Place, process, people, and price.

By innovating within these areas, African farmers can create distinctive products that resonate with global consumers.

She pointed out that one gram of specialty tea can cost about a euro (about shillings 4,142) in countries like Germany, France and the Netherlands, emphasizing the value added through innovation and branding.

Role of storytelling and branding

Bernadine also underscored the importance of branding and storytelling. She said farmers need to highlight the origin, unique processing methods, superior product quality and ethical and sustainability practices of their teas.

"You can’t make products without understanding who you are making them for," she advised, emphasizing the need to study the market and its needs.

Johnston Sharyn from Australian Tea Masters echoed Bernadine's sentiments, adding that the process is crucial for success.

She noted that specialty teas from Africa are not well-known, and sharing ideas on new processing methods is key to the sector's success.

"There is a rise of the informed customers, and tea consumers want teas that improve their health and wellness," Sharyn said.

She highlighted the importance of selling in smaller quantities to earn higher prices and shared that some specialty teas can sell for up to $240 (about shillings 918,000) per kilo in Canada.

Onesmus Masiko, Chairperson of the Uganda Tea Outgrowers Association (UTOA) presents at the conference.

Embracing technology and market techniques

Nicholas Despopoulos, an international tea marketer from zenGate, focused on the potential of electronic selling of specialty and black teas.

He encouraged tea traders to invest in marketing their products and understanding the market before pushing their products.

Despopoulos suggested that traders send samples to buyers and share pictures of their products, communities, and places of origin.

"Traders and stakeholders need to be aggressive in looking for markets," he said, emphasizing the role of technology in accessing new markets and adopting advanced technologies.

Local success stories

Maclean Mutungi Kyamutetera, a producer of Mackie Organic Tea in Western Uganda, shared her journey in embracing the specialty tea trend.

"Our work is manual, and there's no need for machines. The objective is to produce completely organic tea," she noted.

Julian Nyabuhara, the Chairperson of the National Association of Women in Tea.

Kyamutetera believes that more people, especially women in tea, should embrace this trend to earn more money and save household incomes. Her approach aligns with the broader goals of sustainability and purity in tea production.

Esther Barugahare, from Bestera tea and bush tea in Uganda, has also embraced cottage and specialty tea businesses.  Amid the tea sector crisis in Uganda, she said she is hopeful that cottage farmers like her will start earning more from the tea business.

However, she emphasised the need for sharing knowledge and experiences among the East African community tea dealers in order to strengthen competitiveness on the global market and secure a prosperous future for their players.

Definition and potential of specialty tea

Boaz Katah, the chairperson of PSTAK, offered a definition of specialty tea: "When the aroma and flavor of the tea in front of you is a celebration of the plants it is made from, the place they are grown, the processing steps involved, and the people who made it".

This definition encapsulates the holistic and artisanal nature of specialty teas, setting them apart in the market.

Nicholas Despopoulos an international tea marketer from zenGate, a global technology company building commercial solutions for businesses and governments.

Call for regional collaboration

Dr Kiplimo Araap Lagat, the County Executive Committee Member for Agriculture and Cooperative Development in Nandi County, called for regional cooperation to tackle market access issues.

He committed his government’s support and emphasized the need to move away from inorganic farming practices.

"Farmers need to move away from the use of any inorganic farming practices, like pesticides," he said, promising to visit Ugandan tea farmers to explore synergies.

Uganda’s tea sector: Challenges and opportunities

Alex Amanya, the senior project manager at Solidaridad East and Central Africa, highlighted the learning opportunities for Ugandan farmers.

He noted that traditionally, Uganda’s tea sector focused on black CTC tea, primarily for the European market. However, with changing market trends towards sustainability, the tea sector needs to innovate and adapt.

“Most sectors changed the way they produce and market their products as sustainable, mainly looking at environmental and social sustainability," Amanya said.

Johnston Sharyn, from founded Australian Tea Masters tastes some of the teas from African countries.

He pointed out that the tea sector in Uganda did not keep pace with these changes, largely relying on auction sales and demand from less stable Asian markets like Egypt and Pakistan.

Amanya emphasized the need for the tea sector to realign with global market trends and capture lucrative markets in Europe and North America.

He called for the support of cottage and specialty tea businesses to produce diverse tea products such as green tea, orthodox tea, white tea, purple tea, and other specialty teas.

"This, supported by traceability and carbon-neutral production systems, will help tell the environmental sustainability story," he said.

He also noted that cottage businesses, especially those run by women and youth, support social sustainability.

Dr. Kiplimo Araap Lagat received a specialty tea pack from Johnston Sharyn.

Government support and market penetration

Amanya highlighted Uganda's natural advantages, including fertile soils and favorable climate, which enable the production of organic tea with minimal pesticide use.

This advantage, he said, could facilitate the penetration of the Chinese market for green and orthodox teas, fetching higher prices.

However, he stressed the need for government support for small-scale farmers in producing and marketing teas to Europe through bilateral agreements.

Amanya also pointed out that large producers of black teas need to invest in creating sustainable and impact-driven tea products.

He suggested that the tea sector could learn from the coffee and cocoa industries, as tea has the advantage of being a healthier product compared to its competitors.

Maclean Mutungi Kyamutetera, a producer of Mackie Organic Tea.

The path forward

The conference and expo highlighted the significant opportunities that specialty teas present for African farmers.

By focusing on quality, storytelling, branding, and sustainability, farmers can create high-value products that resonate with global consumers.

The event also emphasized the need for regional cooperation, government support, and the adoption of advanced technologies and marketing strategies to unlock the full potential of African specialty teas.

As the tea industry faces changing global market dynamics, the insights and strategies shared at the 1st African Specialty Tea Conference and the African Tea Expo provide a roadmap for African farmers to navigate these challenges and seize new opportunities.

By embracing innovation and collaboration, African tea can secure a prosperous future on the world stage.