KIGOMA: THE Director General of the Tanzania Tea Board, Beatrice Banzi, has emphasised the importance of honouring agreements between investors and smallholder farmers, adding value to tea products and adopting clean energy in production to protect the environment and improve the quality of Tanzanian tea.
Banzi made the remarks during a meeting with the Executive Director of the Tanzania Tea Growers Association, Jones Sikira, and representatives of Udongo Company, who presented findings from a soil health study conducted by the Tanzania Tea Research Institute (TRIT) on tea farms in Lushoto and Muheza districts.
She also noted that the Herkulu and Marvella tea factories, formerly owned by Bombay Burma Trading Corporation, are expected to resume production following the installation of tea-processing machinery.
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Banzi further encouraged the production of a wider range of tea products, including specialty tea and green tea, while calling for the adoption of modern technologies and alternative energy sources to reduce reliance on firewood.
Representatives of the company pledged to comply with directives issued by the Tanzania Tea Board and implement other measures aimed at supporting the development of the tea sector.
The investment is expected to create employment opportunities, expand the market for tea leaves produced by smallholder farmers and stimulate economic development in the surrounding areas.