Arnold mrass cannambo
JF-Expert Member
- Apr 13, 2018
- 4,067
- 2,640
Kenya’s tea earnings have recorded 85.74 billion shillings after a successful harvest leading to a 9.4 percent increase compared to last season’s 78.31 billion shillings.
This increase in gross payments on tea farmers is reason enough for a smile after the global market announced a fall last season.
A kilogram of green leaf fetched an average of 52.51 shillings in the last season, having dropped from 58.61 shillings in 2017.
According to the Kenya Tea Development Agency (KTDA), the higher output means tea farmers took home 62.35 billion shillings after expenses in the current year, 8.6 percent higher than the 57.44 billion shillings paid out in the year to June 2017, translating to better average returns for the over 600,000 farmers.
The farmers have already earned 18.03 billion shillings in initial monthly payments and will receive the 44.33 billion shillings second payment later this month.
The payout represents a return of 73 percent of the total tea revenue, the remaining 27 percent have gone to cover various costs of production.
Green tea leaf production rose 21 percent in the period under review on improved rainfall compared to the dry conditions in the previous year.
KTDA-managed tea factories received a cumulative 1.18 billion kilograms of green leaf up from 976.78 million in the same period last year.
Farmers earn 15 shillings per kilogram of green leaf delivered per month, while the rest is paid as second payment at the end of the financial year.
To deal with rising costs of production, KTDA said, factories are investing in small hydropower stations (SHPs) to deliver affordable power to factories.
The list of SHPs that have been completed and are generating electricity includes Imenti, Gura and Chania.
Factories have also established wood plantations that are expected to be a long-term source of wood fuel for their operations. Besides, as part of the diversification efforts, a number of factories have ventured into orthodox tea production to reduce reliance on black CTC tea.
Kenya is the leading exporter of black CTC teas in the world accounting for about 23 percent of the global exports. Out of this, KTDA accounts for about 13 percent of the global tea exports.
This increase in gross payments on tea farmers is reason enough for a smile after the global market announced a fall last season.
A kilogram of green leaf fetched an average of 52.51 shillings in the last season, having dropped from 58.61 shillings in 2017.
According to the Kenya Tea Development Agency (KTDA), the higher output means tea farmers took home 62.35 billion shillings after expenses in the current year, 8.6 percent higher than the 57.44 billion shillings paid out in the year to June 2017, translating to better average returns for the over 600,000 farmers.
The farmers have already earned 18.03 billion shillings in initial monthly payments and will receive the 44.33 billion shillings second payment later this month.
The payout represents a return of 73 percent of the total tea revenue, the remaining 27 percent have gone to cover various costs of production.
Green tea leaf production rose 21 percent in the period under review on improved rainfall compared to the dry conditions in the previous year.
KTDA-managed tea factories received a cumulative 1.18 billion kilograms of green leaf up from 976.78 million in the same period last year.
Farmers earn 15 shillings per kilogram of green leaf delivered per month, while the rest is paid as second payment at the end of the financial year.
To deal with rising costs of production, KTDA said, factories are investing in small hydropower stations (SHPs) to deliver affordable power to factories.
The list of SHPs that have been completed and are generating electricity includes Imenti, Gura and Chania.
Factories have also established wood plantations that are expected to be a long-term source of wood fuel for their operations. Besides, as part of the diversification efforts, a number of factories have ventured into orthodox tea production to reduce reliance on black CTC tea.
Kenya is the leading exporter of black CTC teas in the world accounting for about 23 percent of the global exports. Out of this, KTDA accounts for about 13 percent of the global tea exports.