THE STANDARD
BUSINESS NEWS
Anne Wairimu delivers her green tea leaves at Mukarara Tea Buying Center in Tetu, Nyeri, on February 16, 2021. [Kibata Kihu, Standard]
Small-holder tea farmers in parts of Mt Kenya region held elections despite a court order suspending such polls in all the 54 Kenya Tea Development Agency (KTDA) tea factories.
The High Court had suspended an executive order issued by President Uhuru Kenyatta on March 12, directing the Tea Board of Kenya to conduct elections in all KTDA tea factories within 60 days.
However, tea farmers in Nyeri, Kirinyaga, and Embu counties went ahead with the elections barely a week after Murang’a County elected new directors. In Nyeri County, four out of the five tea factories - Gitugi, Iriaini, Ragati and Gathuthi - held elections, with the farmers picking six directors in each factory to represent their interests.
THE STANDARD By
Boniface Gikandi |
March 17th 2021 at 00:00:00 GMT +0300
A tea farmer affiliated to Gatunguru Tea Factory in Kangema, Muran ga, on her tea farm. [Kibata Kihu/Standard]
Tea growers from seven tea factories in Murang a County have finalised plans to hold special general meetings to reportedly oust directors through a vote of no confidence.
According to organisers, seven out of ten factories in the area will hold the meetings on Saturday and directors have been served with notices of intent of removal as part of the agenda.
“In your place, another resolution will be moved for your replacement,” reads the notice.
Ginger Rowsey
Thomas Steinwinder is an engineer turned tea farmer in Laurel, Miss. Mississippi may be better known as a place to drink tea than grow tea, but one new farmer is hoping to change that.
Ten years ago, if you had asked Thomas Steinwinder to predict his future, he probably would not have anticipated starting a tea farm in Laurel, Miss.
Sometimes life is hard to predict.
Steinwinder and his wife, Hillary, launched Longleaf Tea Company in 2018. The couple started with 1,200 tea plants on farmland that has been in Hillary’s family for five generations. This spring, they’ll bring their specialty tea products to the market for the first time.
Sitharaman extends cash benefit to Assam tea workers
India
Updated: Saturday, February 6, 2021, 17:47 [IST]
Guwahati, Feb 06: Ahead of the assembly polls in Assam, Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Saturday distributed Rs 3,000 each to 7.47 lakh tea garden workers in the state, totalling Rs 224 crore.
Nirmala Sitharaman
The Union finance minister was in the city to participate in the programme to offer financial assitance to tea workers under the third tranche of the Assam Chah Bagicha Dhan Puraskar Mela Scheme.
Before 2014 Lok Sabha polls, Narendra Modi ji had wished to work for the upliftment of tea garden workers and accordingly several schemes were launched after the NDA came to power, the Union minister said.