Cabinet Secretary for Agriculture and Livestock Development Mutahi Kagwe led tea industry stakeholders during the official release the 2025 Kenya Tea Industry Performance Report.
The CS and other parties were hosted at Rukuriri tea factory in Embu country which is represented at KTDA board by Enos Njeru.
Njeru who took the chairmanship of KTDA holdings last month hosted the stakeholders on Thursday during the colourful event that revealed how the sector made a record market value of KSh218.79 billion last year.
Stakeholders attributed to market expansion and strategic reforms under the Bottom-Up Economic Transformation Agenda (BETA), with Kenya’s tea now reaching 100 international markets, including emerging hubs like Oman, Japan, and Ireland.
Kagwe also announced the enactment of regulations that will introduce full traceability in the value chain, targeting leaf hawking, middleman exploitation, and weighment falsification, while implementing a strategic export levy to fund global branding and research.
The government aims to raise smallholder earnings to KSh100 per kilogram by next year, supported by a new e-commerce B2B marketplace and enhanced trade diplomacy through the AfCFTA, linking producers directly to global buyers.
The report signals a structural reset for the sector, promising better returns and a sustainable future for the 6.5 million Kenyans whose livelihoods depend on tea.
Some of the moments as captured in pictures
John Kamau