The status quo of the African tea market
The tea market in Africa is booming, the production in East and Central Africa is growing, and the consumption in the northern and western parts of the African continent is also growing. Now, producers in every tea-growing country want to improve their image and occupy new markets. Morocco likes green tea very much, while Egypt and other markets like black tea very much. Other markets use two models, sometimes choosing green and black at the same time.
Kenya: the largest producer
Kenya is by far the largest tea producer in Africa. It is located at the equator and can be picked all year round. Kenyan tea farmers are considered to be the main contributors to black tea mixtures, especially black tea and milk, and have increased their marketing efforts. Pure leaf black tea can now be found on supermarket shelves. With the introduction of some orthodox black teas and some green teas, the trend of diversification is growing. Just a few months ago, the hills of Nandi brought a new kind of white tea to the Western market.
For more than 100 years, the tea industry has developed vigorously and healthily, and China is bound to maintain its leading position.
Uganda: still recovering
Uganda, Africa's second largest tea producer, is still recovering from the chaos and destructive mismanagement of Idiamin from 1971 to 1981. In 1981, it was destroyed, and the output dropped to only 5% of what was harvested ten years ago. Uganda's truly humid climate can make its annual tea crops more resistant to climate change, which could become an asset for further development.
Malawi: Tea is an important crop
Malawi is the first tea-producing country in Africa. It belongs to the three major countries. Since its establishment, it has become a part of all major tea aromas in the United Kingdom because of the rich red color in its tea sets. Due to the limited inland arable land, tea is an important crop in Malawi, while sugar and tobacco are the three cash crops that generate much-needed foreign exchange. Western consumers have recently discovered some high-quality green tea, oolong tea, and even white tea from Malawi, which has attracted the attention of the country’s tea economy and made it even more famous.
The remaining 10 African tea producers continue to expand their plantations and continue to produce mainly carbon tetrachloride black for blending. Among them, Rwanda stands out because it has been providing high-quality tea and terroir tea as well as organic black tea for many years.
Current strategy
The goal of the African tea market is to first improve product quality, and then enhance product image through more brands of origin, thereby increasing revenue and occupying new consumer markets. This translates into new offers for orthodox, characteristic and terroir teas mainly from Kenya, Rwanda and Malawi. Most of these new teas were not known until a few years ago, but today they can be found in Europe.
