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ca Tea Brokers Limited was the pioneer broker of the Kenya Tea Export Auction system, which was initiated in November 1956 in Nairobi. Starting off on a very small scale, only limited quantities of secondary grades were auctioned fortnightly. The bulk of Kenya’s tea production at that time was being consigned to the London Auction with the United Kingdom being the most important importer of tea in the world. Producers subsequently considered it worthwhile offering additional quantities in the auctions. Initially, only a few international buying concerns opened offices in Kenya but as quantities increased, the incentive to others was apparent and more international buyers were attracted and the spread of interest from markets other than the UK built up. It was then decided by both producers and active buyer members of the East African Tea Trade Association that as tea was warehoused and shipped from Mombasa, it would be beneficial and easier to control if the export auctions

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