Uganda’s tea sector is showing promising signs of improvement at the international level, with 11 Ugandan tea brands trading above the $1 mark (approx. sh3,650 per kilogram) at the Mombasa Tea Auction during Sale 2025/25, a notable but fragile gain amid a backdrop of persistent structural challenges.
According to the Wednesday, June 26, 2025, report by Tea Brokers East Africa Limited, this performance marks a gradual upward trend in the perception and pricing of Ugandan teas, suggesting improvements in factory processing standards, product quality, and branding.
But while the international spotlight brightens on Ugandan tea, a closer look at the data and feedback from stakeholders reveals a market in precarious transition, facing stiff regional competition, plummeting farm-gate prices, and an urgent need for government intervention.
A Gradual Climb Amid Declining Volumes
Of the 39 Ugandan brands featured in Sale 2025/25, 11 traded above $1—a feat fewer brands are achieving with each passing sale.
In comparison, Sale 2025/23 had 19 brands trading above $1, Sale 2025/22 had 29 brands in that range while sale 2025/24 also had 19 brands trading above $1.
Average prices have also declined slightly:
Sale 2025/22: $1.01 across 46 brands
Sale 2025/23: $0.99 across 37 brands
Sale 2025/24: $0.99 across 42 brands
Sale 2025/25: $0.96 across 39 brands
This downward trend in average price and participating brands hints at declining volumes and inconsistent quality, even as individual high-performing brands stand out.
Notable top performers from Sale 2025/22 auctions include Kyamuhunga ($1.16), Bwindi ($1.14) and Kabale ($1.11).
These numbers show that while peak pricing remains achievable, the base of high-performing Ugandan teas is narrowing.
Shift from Black Tea to Specialty Teas
Kennedy Rwaboona, a seasoned tea farmer from Muhanga Town Council, Rukiga District, believes Uganda must evolve or risk extinction in the global tea economy.
“There is a global demand shift from black tea to specialty tea. We need to respond to this shift and hit a gold mine,” Rwaboona warned.
Globally, markets are leaning towards specialty teas—green teas, herbal infusions, and organically grown varieties—which fetch significantly higher prices in premium markets across Asia, Europe, and North America.
Rwaboona’s insights reflect a growing awareness within Uganda’s tea farming community that consumer preferences are changing rapidly, and Uganda must position itself ahead of the curve through innovation, branding, and quality differentiation.
According to Victoria Ashabahebwa, Chairperson of the Uganda Tea Association (UTA), the uptick in pricing reflects real improvements at the factory level.
“Compared to the same time last year, factories are fetching better prices. Demand for Ugandan tea is still growing. The volumes, however, remain very low, serving the same buyers, giving us a temporary competitive edge,” Ashabahebwa said.
But she cautioned that Uganda’s gains at the auction remain fragile and unsustainable if not backed by increased volume, innovation, and targeted marketing.
“This is not a strategy; the market forces are applied. The removal of old teas from the auction last year allowed newer teas to compete fairly,” she explained.
Volume and Visibility
Despite being Africa’s fourth-largest tea producer—after Kenya, Malawi, and Tanzania—Uganda still lags behind in market visibility, export volume, and pricing power.
Much of Uganda’s tea is exported through the Mombasa Tea Auction, a marketplace dominated by Kenyan tea, particularly through the Kenya Tea Development Agency (KTDA).
This dominance skews pricing benchmarks and creates downward pressure on Ugandan teas, regardless of improvements in quality.
Ashabahebwa emphasizes the need for government-backed structural interventions to strengthen Uganda’s tea competitiveness.
“KTDA’s high volumes at the Mombasa auction remain a persistent challenge that continues to suppress prices. We urgently need targeted interventions to build a more sustainable future for the tea industry,” she said.
Fertilizer, Working Capital, and a Dying Crop
Many tea farmers say the sector is on life support, with increasing reports of farmers abandoning or uprooting their tea gardens due to the “unviability” of the business.
From October last year to now, the farm-gate price of green tea leaves has collapsed from sh250 per kilogram to as low as sh120, leaving many smallholders in financial distress.
“Fertilizers are crucial. If the government gives us the proposed sh40 billion fertilizer subsidy, each farmer could buy fertilizers for one season and rejuvenate their gardens,” a Dunstan Turinawe noted.
“We need to keep pushing for impactful interventions at a higher level/national. Each one of us should get involved. Many farmers are better placed to advocate and lobby for tea farmers than most leaders. We should use our positions to cause a positive change in the tea industry, small or big. Without this support, gardens are becoming overgrown, poorly maintained, and ultimately unproductive,” he said.
Ashabahebwa plainly put it, “Without structural improvements in the tea value chain—from production to processing, logistics to marketing—these occasional wins may not be enough to transform the lives of Uganda’s over 1.2 million people dependent on tea.”
