NAIROBI, May 20 (Xinhua) \u2014 Nestled in the picturesque countryside of Murang\u2019a County in central Kenya, the Umbui\u00a0purple\u00a0tea\u00a0farm\u00a0is a stunning sight, with vibrant shoots flourishing.<\/p>\n
This 4.4-hectare\u00a0farm, owned by local entrepreneur Darius Kizito, employs dozens of workers who pluck fresh\u00a0tea\u00a0shoots and deliver them to a nearby factory for processing and packaging. Kizito, who has managed the\u00a0farm\u00a0for nearly 14 years, proudly shares how the introduction of\u00a0purple\u00a0tea\u00a0has created new revenue streams for local communities, most of whom are subsistence farmers. \u201cI see a bright future for\u00a0purple\u00a0tea\u00a0in this country. <\/p>\n
Farmers have realized it is more profitable compared to black\u00a0tea,\u201d Kizito told Xinhua in early May, ahead of International\u00a0Tea\u00a0Day on May 21. During the March-May long rains season, the\u00a0purple\u00a0tea\u00a0harvest tripled, boosting daily wages for the artisanal pluckers, some of whom are migrant laborers from various parts of Kenya. About three miles north of the Umbui\u00a0farm, workers at Gatanga Industries\u00a0Tea\u00a0Factory sort the succulent leaves for drying in a greenhouse before processing them with Chinese-made equipment.<\/p>\n
Michael Ngugi, a factory technician, joined Gatanga Industries in 2017 when it commenced operations. He said the decision to process\u00a0purple\u00a0tea\u00a0was driven by growing local demand. \u201cFor the last six years, consumption of\u00a0purple\u00a0tea\u00a0in this locality and countrywide has increased. We have even opened a shop for local consumers,\u201d Ngugi said. <\/p>\n
The partnership with China has been fruitful, with Chinese experts providing training on processing and preparing\u00a0purple\u00a0tea\u00a0to enhance health benefits. Teresia Nyambura, a processor and packer at Gatanga Industries since 2019, credits Chinese instructors for improving her skills in processing, packing and tasting\u00a0purple\u00a0tea, which has allowed her to reach out to community members and encourage them to embrace this value-added\u00a0tea\u00a0variety. <\/p>\n
Ngugi revealed that most of the\u00a0purple\u00a0tea\u00a0processed and packaged at Gatanga Industries is exported to markets in the United States, Europe and China.<\/p>\n
Derived from the Assam\u00a0tea\u00a0plant, which has been cultivated in the Kenyan highlands since the early 20th century,\u00a0purple\u00a0tea\u00a0(Camellia sinensis) has a distinct flavor and is rich in antioxidants. Its cultivation has accelerated since 2011, marking a milestone in\u00a0Kenya\u2019s\u00a0efforts to add value to the commodity and boost its demand both locally and internationally.<\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
NAIROBI, May 20 (Xinhua) \u2014 Nestled in the picturesque countryside of Murang\u2019a County in central Kenya, the Umbui\u00a0purple\u00a0tea\u00a0farm\u00a0is a stunning sight, with vibrant shoots flourishing. This 4.4-hectare\u00a0farm, owned by local entrepreneur Darius Kizito, employs dozens of workers who pluck fresh\u00a0tea\u00a0shoots and deliver them to a nearby factory for processing and packaging. Kizito, who has managed […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":0,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-43156","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized","entry"],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack-related-posts":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/chezaspin.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/43156","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/chezaspin.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/chezaspin.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chezaspin.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=43156"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/chezaspin.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/43156\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/chezaspin.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=43156"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chezaspin.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=43156"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chezaspin.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=43156"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}