{"id":54671,"date":"2025-06-26T15:41:21","date_gmt":"2025-06-26T15:41:21","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/how-chinese-white-tea-grown-in-rwanda-is-making-waves-back-in-china\/"},"modified":"2025-06-26T14:30:25","modified_gmt":"2025-06-26T14:30:25","slug":"how-chinese-white-tea-grown-in-rwanda-is-making-waves-back-in-china","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/how-chinese-white-tea-grown-in-rwanda-is-making-waves-back-in-china\/","title":{"rendered":"How Chinese white tea grown in Rwanda is making waves back in China"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>Those were the words of CGTN reporter Wendyl Martin, describing what, for many, is an unexpected blend of origin and tradition: Rwandan-grown white silver needle tea, being sold and tasted in China.<\/p>\n<p>But this tea\u2019s journey is more than a sip of flavour; it\u2019s a story of ancient trade routes, modern partnerships, and cross-continental adaptation.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cOur ancestors have been selling Chinese tea to the world,\u201d said Wang Mingjie, a tea vendor at the market. \u201cThey exported tea from Fujian Province via the ancient Silk Road. Our generation\u2019s goal is to plant Chinese tea all over the world.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>That dream led Chinese tea entrepreneurs to the highlands of East Africa, where climate, altitude, and soil converge to create near-perfect conditions for tea cultivation.<\/p>\n<p>Rwanda and Kenya, in particular, offer the ideal mix of cool, misty hills and fertile volcanic earth perfect for growing premium varieties like white silver needle, a tea prized for its delicate flavour and high antioxidant content.<\/p>\n<p>Rwanda now produces a rare, high-quality silver needle white tea, also known as \u201cSilverback Needles.\u201d Grown at elevations of 5,500\u20137,500 feet in areas such as the Rukeri Valley and Gisovu Estate near Nyungwe Forest, it has found a home far from its Chinese roots.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cSo we searched for a suitable area for the tea plantation. In Africa, we found the temperature and environment in Rwanda and Kenya especially suitable for tea trees,\u201d Wang continued. \u201cWe brought Chinese tea-making techniques there. Let\u2019s spread Chinese tea to the world.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The decision to export not just the product but also the production process is beginning to bear fruit. White silver needle tea, long a hallmark of China\u2019s Fujian Province, is now part of Rwanda\u2019s increasingly diverse agricultural export portfolio.<\/p>\n<p>According to the Ministry of Agriculture and Animal Resources (MINAGRI) Annual Report, Rwanda\u2019s tea sector has shown strong growth. In the 2023\/2024 fiscal year, tea export revenue reached $114.88 million\u2014a 7.1% increase from the previous year, despite a slight drop in production. The growth is attributed to improved quality and favourable global prices.<\/p>\n<p>While the tea is taking root in African soil, it is also coming full circle\u2014back to Chinese cups, Chinese hands, and Chinese markets. And it does so with a unique identity: Chinese in technique, African in terroir, and global in ambition.<\/p>\n<p>What makes this story especially intriguing is how Chinese tea-growing expertise met Rwandan altitude and ecology. Rwanda\u2019s volcanic soil, rainfall patterns, and higher elevations mirror the misty mountains of Fujian, the original home of white silver needle tea.<\/p>\n<p>Thanks to this environmental harmony, Chinese entrepreneurs like Wang Mingjie haven\u2019t just built a supply chain, they\u2019ve discovered a second homeland for their centuries-old craft.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"spip-document spip-document-89865 aligncenter\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/en-images.igihe.com\/jpg\/tea_vendor_wang_mingjie_left_describes_how_his_family_has_sold_chinese_tea_for_generations_from_fujian_to_the_world.jpg\" alt=\"Tea vendor Wang Mingjie [left] describes how his family has sold Chinese tea for generations, from Fujian to the world.\" \/><\/figure>\n<figure class=\"spip-document spip-document-89867 aligncenter\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/en-images.igihe.com\/jpg\/cgtn_journalist_wendyl_martin_brews_a_pot_of_rwandan_white_silver_needle_tea_at_the_permanent_african_market_in_changsha.jpg\" alt=\"CGTN journalist Wendyl Martin brews a pot of Rwandan white silver needle tea at the permanent African market in Changsha.\" \/><\/figure>\n<figure class=\"spip-document spip-document-89868 aligncenter\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/en-images.igihe.com\/png\/at_his_stall_in_changsha_wang_explains_how_the_ancient_silk_road_spirit_lives_on_through_modern_agricultural_partnerships.png\" alt=\"At his stall in Changsha, Wang explains how the ancient Silk Road spirit lives on through modern agricultural partnerships.\" \/><\/figure>\n<figure class=\"spip-document spip-document-89866 aligncenter\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/en-images.igihe.com\/png\/_silverback_needles_this_premium_tea_draws_its_strength_from_rwanda_s_volcanic_soil_and_cool_climate.png\" alt=\"\u2018Silverback Needles,\u2019 this premium tea draws its strength from Rwanda\u2019s volcanic soil and cool climate.\" \/><\/figure>\n<figure class=\"spip-document spip-document-89869 aligncenter\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/en-images.igihe.com\/png\/delicate_and_downy_these_white_silver_needle_tea_leaves_were_grown_in_rwanda_s_misty_highlands_at_altitudes_above_1_800_meters.png\" alt=\"Delicate and downy, these white silver needle tea leaves were grown in Rwanda\u2019s misty highlands at altitudes above 1,800 meters.\" \/><\/figure>\n<figure class=\"spip-document spip-document-89870 aligncenter\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/en-images.igihe.com\/jpg\/logo-5.jpg\" alt=\"\" \/><\/figure>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>\u201cThis is white silver needle tea from Rwanda, and we\u2019ve just started brewing it in a tea jug. As you can see, the tea leaves look like they\u2019re dancing in the water. It\u2019s available here at the permanent African market in Changsha. Smells like honey. Very crisp, fresh taste and quite smooth as well.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":131,"featured_media":2000089877,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[62],"tags":[75],"byline":[2252],"hashtag":[],"class_list":["post-54671","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-business-62","tag-homenews","byline-christian-mugisha"],"bylines":[{"id":2252,"name":"Christian Mugisha","slug":"christian-mugisha","description":"","image":{"id":0,"url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/?s=96&d=mm&f=y&r=g","alt":"Default avatar","title":"Default avatar","caption":"","mime_type":"image\/jpeg","sizes":[]},"user_id":null}],"contributors":[{"id":2252,"name":"Christian Mugisha","slug":"christian-mugisha","description":"","image":{"id":0,"url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/?s=96&d=mm&f=y&r=g","alt":"Default avatar","title":"Default avatar","caption":"","mime_type":"image\/jpeg","sizes":[]},"user_id":null}],"featured_image":{"id":2000089877,"url":"https:\/\/en-images.igihe.com\/IMG\/logo\/image_white_tea_china.png","alt":"","caption":"","mime_type":"image\/png","width":0,"height":0,"sizes":{"thumbnail":{"url":"https:\/\/en-images.igihe.com\/IMG\/logo\/image_white_tea_china.png","width":1,"height":1},"medium":{"url":"https:\/\/en-images.igihe.com\/IMG\/logo\/image_white_tea_china.png","width":1,"height":1},"medium_large":{"url":"https:\/\/en-images.igihe.com\/IMG\/logo\/image_white_tea_china.png","width":1,"height":1},"large":{"url":"https:\/\/en-images.igihe.com\/IMG\/logo\/image_white_tea_china.png","width":1,"height":1},"full":{"url":"https:\/\/en-images.igihe.com\/IMG\/logo\/image_white_tea_china.png","width":0,"height":0}}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/54671","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/131"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=54671"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/54671\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2000089877"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=54671"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=54671"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=54671"},{"taxonomy":"byline","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/byline?post=54671"},{"taxonomy":"hashtag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/hashtag?post=54671"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}