Following Kenya’s recent State Visit to China, the two countries have engaged in bilateral talks aimed at expanding Kenyan tea’s access to the Chinese market. President William Ruto met with Zhang Chaobin, Chairman of Fuzhou Benny Tea Industries, one of China’s top three companies in tea production and retail, to explore ways to increase Kenyan tea exports.
The discussions brought together key stakeholders from Kenya’s tea sector, including the Ministry of Agriculture, the Kenya Tea Development Agency (KTDA) and the Kenya Tea Board (KTB). According to the State House, Ruto is driving a strategic push to boost growth, packaging, and export of orthodox and specialty teas in overseas markets. The talks exemplified this commitment to expanding the market for Kenyan produce.
Zhang Chaobin expressed his company’s strong interest in sourcing the orthodox tea they require annually from Kenya. He also committed to investing in modern orthodox tea production factories in selected tea-growing counties, alongside efforts to enhance value addition for Kenya’s orthodox tea. Kenya aims to deepen bilateral trade relations with China by increasing exports of key commodities such as tea, coffee, avocado and macadamia nuts to the Chinese market.
