BUCKINGHAM GATE, London – Tea multinational Finlays Lipton Teas and Infusion has threatened to boycott buying tea from Toror Tea Factory following the election of John Chebochok as the Company’s Director.
Chebochok was recently cleared to run for directorship at Tegat Tea Factory (which also owns Toror Tea Factory) despite being featured in the BBC expose ‘Sex for Work: The True Cost of Our Tea’ in February 203.
As soon as Finlays became aware of the allegations made against Chebochok in the BBC documentary, the leading independent B2B supplier of tea, coffee, and botanical solutions to beverage brand owners worldwide immediately terminated his contract with Finlays, barred him from entering its property and reported the matter to the local national police.
“While no charges were ultimately brought, the undercover footage of Chebochok and the testimonies of the survivors featured within the documentary cannot be ignored. We strongly believe that it is untenable for Chebochok to hold any office within the Kenya Tea Development Agency (KTDA),” the firm said in a statement.
What is the Kenya Tea Development Agency (KTDA)
KTDA is a private agency owned through the corporate shareholding of 54 tea companies. Over 650,000 smallholder tea farmers own these companies in 19 counties in Kenya, and KTDA has 71 tea processing factories.
However, in a statement seen by Y News and addressed to KTDA chairman Enos Njiru Njeru, Finlays, the major buyers of Kenya’s tea at the Mombasa auction, observed that allowing Chebochok to hold a position of authority in the KTDA serves to counteract the excellent work being done by many stakeholders across Kenya and globally to tackle the issue of sexual and gender-based violence on tea farms.
“It also undermines our customer/supplier relationship and puts the reputation of the KTDA and the wider Kenyan tea industry at risk,” reads the statement authored by Ben Woolf, the Corporate Affairs Director (General Counsel) at Finlays.
How KTDA came to its defence over the John Chebochock matter
But in a quick rejoinder, KTDA claimed that it has no role in managing the election of smallholder tea factory directors except for the administrative purposes of providing farmers’ details and voting venues.
“The responsibility of conducting elections was bestowed upon the IEBC. The role played by IEBC included vetting the candidates, receipt of nomination papers, printing ballot papers, voting and tallying results,” KTDA said in a statement from its Corporate Communications.
The statement seen by Y News further reads:
“Each factory Company is an independent entity with its memorandum and articles of association stipulating how the directors’ elections will be done. He (Chebochok) was elected by one of the six electoral areas of the factory on June 28, 2024 and the shareholders of the factory will have to make a final decision a special general meeting on whether to accept him as a factory manager of not.”
What the Kenyan Tea Act 2020 stipulates
KTDA further stated that the Kenyan government enacted the Tea Act 2020 to reform the tea sector.
KTDA reiterated the reforms that changed the process of electing factory directors from using shares as a voting basis to the ‘one-farmer-one-vote’ system and the use of independent bodies to manage the elections.
“KTDA released a statement on June 25, 2024, urging the independent bodies to ensure those cleared were not of questionable character. We call upon all our tea buyers, stakeholders and partners to allow us to work with all the concerned players and authorities to resolve concerns raised regarding his nomination due to the legal and procedural complexities outlined above,” the statement reads in part.
Meanwhile, Finlays, in its stamen, insisted that it would not be able to purchase tea from Toror Tea Factory while Chebochok held the role of Director.
“We are monitoring this situation closely and trust you will take swift and divisive action. We look forward to receiving your urgent response,” Woolf stated.
