Kenya’s tea industry is facing a growing crisis after the US Israeli war on Iran disrupted key shipping routes to the Middle East, leaving millions of kilograms of tea stuck in warehouses and threatening farmer incomes. Reuters reported that about 8 million kilograms of tea had piled up in storage in Mombasa because vessels were being rerouted away from danger zones including the Strait of Hormuz and the Bab el Mandeb Strait.
The Middle East is one of the most important markets for Kenyan tea, accounting for about 20% to 25% of exports, according to the East Africa Tea Traders Association. Its managing director, George Omuga, told Reuters that the sector has been losing around $8 million every week since March 1 as transport delays and higher freight costs continue to bite.
The disruption has exposed how vulnerable Kenya’s tea trade is to overseas conflict. Tea destined for markets such as Pakistan and Egypt is still moving, but through longer and more expensive routes, reducing margins across the supply chain. Exporters say the backlog is worsening pressure on an industry that was already trying to recover from earlier shocks, including the loss of trade linked to the war in Ukraine.
President William Ruto has said Kenya’s export performance remains strong, noting that 81% of tea sold at auction in March was exported. But Omuga said that figure reflects tea purchased at auction, not tea that has actually left the country, and does not capture the worsening shipping bottleneck on the ground.
The crisis is now raising broader concerns for Kenya’s economy, where tea remains one of the country’s most important foreign exchange earners. Industry leaders say the latest disruption shows the urgent need for Kenya to diversify export markets, especially within Africa, so producers are less exposed to geopolitical shocks far beyond the country’s borders.
