Mwaniki Wahome
26 September 2007
Nairobi — Higher competition has forced players in the tea industry to repackage and flavour their brands.
One of them, Kenya Tea Packers (Ketepa), has released three brands targeting the youth. The lemon, masala and ginger flavoured teas are aimed at what the company described as "the upwardly mobile youth" who are health conscious. Tea has generally lost out in the beverage market for teenagers and young adults to juices and chocolate.
Ketepa managing director, Timothy Chege said the tea industry has to change to remain relevant in an increasingly competitive market. "We want to reposition tea to be the drink of choice, because the youth constitute 52 per cent of the population," he said.
Ketepa conducted research into the tastes of the youth, some guided by observation, especially among those who added lemon to their tea to suit their taste. "We did research, and when we placed the brands on the supermarket shelves they ran out the first day ," said Mr Chege.
The CEO said that the aim was to segment the market and answer to the needs of the changing consumer tastes.
Competition
But disguised in this new drive is the competition from other beverages that resonate well with the youth.
The Kenya Tea Development Agency (KTDA) last year released the Jani brand, with the purpose of soaring their sales. Sasini tea last year started packaging their tea, as opposed to bulk selling to appeal to the consumers. But the consumption of tea remains low in Kenya, compared to other tea producing nations. India and China reportedly consume almost all their tea.
In Kenya, only 41 per cent of the youth consume tea regularly.
The Tea Board of Kenya managing director, Sicily Kariuki said yesterday that the 2007 tea output may rise to a record 350 million kg, compared to 310.6 million for 2006, proof that the sector is in full recovery.
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