Farmers in Bomet must be a happy lot after their governor, Dr. Hillary Barchok struck a deal in Iran to export 200 metric tons of tea per month.
This deal has attracted various interested parties as it is expected to boost the earnings of the small scale tea growers in the South Rift region.
This comes as Dr. Hillary Barchok came out to calm tension and fear that it would be hard to remit money to Kenyan traders after the US imposed sanctions in the Islamic Republic of Iran.
The governor came in defense that the imposition by the US government on Iran does not affect foodstuffs and drugs. As such, the trade will be accomplished by paying money to farmer’s cooperative societies and private tea factories.
The direct sale of tea through Mombasa Tea Auction is more lucrative to the participants as a kilogram of CTC tea selling for a minimum of 3 US dollars (Ksh 300).
According to Nation, the tea exported from Bomet is stocked at Etka Organization Company Limited chain stores, which is a leading chain store for food products in Iran.
The 86 metric tons of tea exported by Bomet County on June this year, was sold for 27.7 million which translates to sh 90 per kilogram more than what is got at Mombasa Tea Auction.
A delegation while addressing the press at the Bomet County headquarters, said once the Food and Drugs Association (FDA) certifies that the tea is safe for consumption and sale in Iran, the purchase price will be raised with tea currently retailing at sh 900 per kilogram in the outlets of Tehran.
Amidst this deal, agriculture CS Peter Munya disagreed with Bomet governor over the deal claiming that it was not approved by the national government and other relevant bodies. CS Munya argued that the direct sale of tea to Iran would open opportunities for brokers to hide their total earnings from farmers, thus further impoverishing them.
