NAIROBI: Between 6,000 and 8,000 tonnes of tea, worth around $24 million, is stuck at Kenya’s port of Mombasa because of the war in the Middle East, trade officials said.
The East African Tea Trade Association manages auctions at the port city, which serves as a global marketplace where hundreds of thousands
of tonnes of tea from the region are sold every year.
Around 65 percent of the East African tea market has been affected by the war that began on Feb. 28, association director George Omuga said.
As a result, “six to eight million kg” are stuck in Mombasa, he said.
“So that’s an average of $24 million worth of tea at the port,” he added.
The tea has been sold to customers but cannot be shipped, mainly to the Middle East, which he estimates accounts for about 20 percent of the market.
Shipments to Pakistan, which accounts for 40 percent of the market, have also been disrupted by a surge in transport costs due to changes in shipping routes and higher insurance premiums.
Tea sales, meanwhile, have fallen by nearly 20 percent in recent weeks due to the war, resulting in a loss of $8 million per week.
Kenyan meat and horticulture are also feeling the impact of the conflict, suffering losses amounting to millions of dollars every week.
During the first three weeks of March, only five percent of the 150 to 200 tonnes of daily meat exports were delivered, most of which were destined for the Middle East, according to Nicholas Ngahu, CEO of the Kenya Meat and Livestock Exporters Industry Council.
The Middle East also accounts for between 10 and 15 percent of Kenya’s flower exports, and serves as a major transit point, particularly for shipments to Europe.
