Buy Rwanda Tea Directly From Exporters & Suppliers - Best of 2024 Market Prices

We offer high-quality Rwanda tea to the local and export markets. We source the raw fresh Rwanda tea from family growers in the country.

Rwanda tea (Camellia sinensis) is the second biggest export from the country and one of the prime agricultural produce for income generation for smallholder farmers. In 2017, the country exported some 27.8 million kilograms of the crop. The main markets are Pakistan and Europe. There are different commercial brands or types of tea to choose from in Rwanda depending on the processing methods. The most popular include black, white and green teas. There are also organic and authentic teas. Some processing factories in the country even spice the tea right at the plant upon a specific request by clients.

Tea first came to Rwanda in the year 1952. The origin of the crop was Central Asia around 2737 B.C. This is when a Chinese emperor accidentally got Camellia sinensis leaves on his boiled water and the rest is history.

We source our Rwanda tea from various cool plateaus of the country. These include Kitabi, Gisovu, Kangaita and Gichumbi. Other sources are Kibuye, Rubavu, Nyaruguru, Butera and Gikongoro. On our part, we source from only family growers who own less than 2 acres of land which they cultivate under farmyard manure. We also ensure that our sources use chemical sprays sparingly to reduce residual level buildup.

We harvest Rwanda tea through the agency of men and women pickers. The experienced workers expedite the process of picking the two leaves and the bud. They carry large, wide-brim woven baskets on their back to put the leaves as they move.

Before the twist-and-curl process can start, we prepare the tea at the factory. We wither or cure the leaves. This is because at harvest time they are thick, watery and gluey. We use natural fiber mats to lay them in single layers so that they will assimilate the sun. At the end of curing, the leaves will have lost half their moisture.

We then bruise Rwanda tea leaves. This is a process that entails crushing. It may take diverse processes depending on the type of beverage needed. With black tea, we break the foliage into tiny bits and term the leaves as bruised. White tea on its part requires twisting rather than crushing as it is mild. In essence, bruising helps to produce consistent results for the tea. It exposes the cells of the leaves so that they can easily change through oxidation.

Oxidation is indeed the next step in the preparation of Rwanda tea. It involves laying the crushed or twisted leaves in the sun to turn them I brown color. In urgent orders, we may use artificial heat at low temperatures to hasten ‘browning.’ The only type that does not require oxidation is green tea which has to retain its original color.

The follow-up stage of processing Rwanda tea is heating. We use a higher temperature than the one in the oxidation stage to kill enzymes that promote oxidation. This is why the leaves will no longer turn color other than brown even after consistent heating. This procedure, however, applies only to green tea. The leaves will lose their lime green appearance but will not go through oxidation due to the high heat. In short, the produce will still make ‘green’ tea. We may tone up the flavor by choosing to boil, fry or roast the stuff but roasting gives the finest aroma.

The final step before packing is drying the black, green or white tea. Drying does away with any lingering moisture and preserves the leaves. We may opt to sun-dry or roast them. Charcoal-roasting usually brings the most distinctive aroma.

We pack Rwanda tea in gunny bags and jute bags. Our basic unit size is 50 kilograms. We also offer the tea in retail sachets of 500 g and above. We label each package with the details of the name and type (black, green or white), the weight, the country of origin, the expiry date and the packing date.

We store Rwanda tea in a designated cold room environment in a dimly-lit setup. We transport the cargo to the airport in Kigali or by long-distance to Tanzania’s port of Dar-es-Salaam on the same day of packing.  The dispatch reaches you on time depending on the means of travel.

In short, black, white or green tea never came easier than via our Rwanda tea shipments. We spare no effort to produce a world-quality product for making aromatic beverages. This is why we start by sourcing from family growers who grow the crop under Global Good Agricultural Practices (GAP) conditions. We keep your quantity by always having surplus produce from our farming partners. Our prices are also quite low to reflect your budget. Make an order today!