Tea Production and Sustainability Training Course

Duration 5 days 10 modules · 33 contact hours
Level Intermediate Certificate on completion
Who attends Tea Estate Managers, Factory Managers and others
Fee from USD 1,100 KSh 95,000 for Kenyan organisations
Where 52 cities + online See dates by city
Next start 7 Nov 2026 Course code SD-AA-052

Before you join: Participants should have practical exposure to tea production, factory operations, agricultural extension, quality assurance, sustainability programmes or tea sourcing.

Dates & prices

Two start dates a month in every city, and live online on weekdays or weekends. Fees are per participant; classroom fees include tuition, materials, lunch and refreshments, and the certificate.

Suggest a date or city

Showing the next six months. Later dates, other cities and private deliveries for your team are available on request.

Course overview

Tea producers, factories, exporters and development programmes face linked pressures: inconsistent green-leaf quality, rising input costs, pest and disease risk, buyer scrutiny, climate variability and tighter expectations on labour and environmental performance. Poor control at field or factory level can reduce cup quality, increase residues or contamination, weaken traceability and put contracts at risk. Managers need practical systems that connect agronomy, processing, quality assurance and responsible production.

This course examines tea production from site selection and nursery management through plucking, factory processing, tasting, grading, food safety, traceability and market specifications. Participants learn to use soil-test results, field scouting records, plucking standards, pest-management plans, factory control points and quality-release criteria. The programme also addresses worker welfare, pesticide stewardship, water and energy management, biodiversity, climate adaptation, certification evidence and corrective-action management.

Instruction combines short technical briefings with tea estate, smallholder and factory cases. Participants interpret production records, diagnose quality and sustainability issues, assess audit evidence and prepare practical improvement actions. The course is delivered over five days in a classroom setting in 50+ cities or live online, with training days running from 08:30 to 16:30 and about 6.5 contact hours each day. Participants receive a certificate of completion and leave with a tea production and sustainability improvement pack containing reusable templates and plans.

The course is suited to professionals responsible for tea estates, outgrower programmes, processing factories, quality systems, sustainability commitments, agricultural extension or responsible sourcing. It is particularly relevant where teams must meet buyer requirements while maintaining profitable production and credible environmental and social controls.

What you will be able to do

  • Map tea value chains and identify field, factory and market control points
  • Assess land suitability using soil, slope, drainage and erosion indicators
  • Set plucking standards and harvest calendars using crop and labour data
  • Develop integrated pest management plans using scouting, thresholds and pesticide controls
  • Apply factory process controls for withering, maceration, oxidation, drying and packing
  • Evaluate tea quality using tasting protocols, lot sampling and product specifications
  • Prepare environmental and social risk controls aligned with tea sustainability requirements
  • Conduct internal audits and produce corrective-action plans from nonconformity evidence

Benefits of attending

For you

  • Make defensible field and factory decisions using production and quality evidence
  • Diagnose causes of poor leaf quality, processing defects and sustainability gaps
  • Prepare for buyer visits, certification audits and supplier assessments
  • Use tea-specific templates for scouting, traceability, corrective actions and improvement planning
  • Build credibility when coordinating agronomy, factory, labour and sustainability teams

For your organisation

  • Improve green-leaf consistency and factory yield through defined crop and intake controls
  • Reduce pesticide, residue and contamination risks affecting buyer acceptance
  • Strengthen traceability from leaf collection through finished-tea dispatch
  • Target water, energy, waste and climate actions using measured operational data
  • Produce clearer audit evidence and close recurring nonconformities faster

Course modules

10 modules over 5 days

Participants can map a tea value chain and identify controls affecting quality, cost, traceability and market access.

  • Tea value chain mapped from nursery inputs to auction or direct sale
  • Camellia sinensis varieties matched to altitude, rainfall and market purpose
  • Terroir factors assessed through soil, climate, cultivar and processing interactions
  • CTC and orthodox systems compared for quality, yield and buyer specifications
  • Smallholder, estate and outgrower production models distinguished by control points
  • Traceability boundaries defined from leaf collection through blending and packing
  • Price formation examined across farmgate, factory, auction, export and retail

Participants can assess land suitability and plan establishment controls for productive, erosion-conscious tea fields.

  • Land suitability assessed using slope, drainage, pH and erosion indicators
  • Soil sampling plans specify depth, timing, composite samples and laboratory tests
  • Lime and fertiliser recommendations calculated from soil-test results and yield targets
  • Nursery sanitation controls reduce damping-off, nematodes and planting-material losses
  • Planting density selected using cultivar vigour, slope and mechanisation constraints
  • Contour drains, grass strips and terraces designed for runoff control

Participants can set crop-management and leaf-handling standards that protect yield, quality and labour productivity.

  • Pruning cycles planned around cultivar response, labour availability and recovery periods
  • Plucking standards set bud-to-leaf ratio, interval and acceptable leaf condition
  • Field rounds record shoot density, banjhi percentage and plucker performance
  • Shear and hand-plucking methods compared for quality and labour productivity
  • Harvest calendars align rainfall patterns, flush cycles and factory capacity
  • Leaf handling procedures prevent bruising, heating and contamination before transport

Participants can develop pest-management controls that protect crops, workers, beneficial organisms and buyer requirements.

  • Scouting protocols identify tea mosquito bug, mites, caterpillars and diseases
  • Economic thresholds distinguish justified treatment from routine calendar spraying
  • Integrated pest management combines monitoring, biological control and selective pesticides
  • WHO pesticide hazard classes inform product selection and worker precautions
  • Resistance-management rotations use IRAC and FRAC mode-of-action groupings
  • Pre-harvest intervals and maximum residue limits protect market access
  • Sprayer calibration verifies nozzle output, travel speed and application volume

Participants can identify and control critical processing variables from green-leaf intake through packing.

  • Green-leaf intake checks assess freshness, moisture, contamination and traceability
  • Withering parameters control moisture loss, airflow, temperature and leaf condition
  • Orthodox rolling and CTC maceration linked to particle size and liquor
  • Oxidation managed through time, humidity, temperature and sensory observation
  • Drying controls set inlet temperature, residence time and final moisture
  • Sorting, grading and packing prevent foreign matter and moisture uptake
  • HACCP plans identify biological, chemical and physical hazards at critical stages

Participants can evaluate tea quality, define specifications and maintain records supporting product release.

  • Tea tasting protocols assess dry leaf, infusion, liquor, flavour and mouthfeel
  • Lot sampling plans produce representative samples for grading and buyer approval
  • Moisture, particle size and foreign-matter tests support release decisions
  • Defect classification separates taint, smoke, mould, stalk and extraneous matter
  • Product specifications translate buyer requirements into measurable factory controls
  • Traceability records link made-tea lots to suppliers, shifts and inputs
  • Claims controls distinguish origin, organic, fair trade and sustainability statements

Participants can establish practical labour and safety controls for tea estates, factories and contractors.

  • Labour plans calculate plucker staffing from acreage, yield and plucking rounds
  • Safe work procedures cover pruning tools, chemical handling and machinery guarding
  • Personal protective equipment matrices match hazards, tasks and replacement schedules
  • Grievance mechanisms record cases, protect confidentiality and establish response timelines
  • Child-labour and forced-labour risk assessments target recruitment and seasonal work
  • Gender-responsive facilities address sanitation, safety, transport and nursing needs
  • Contractor controls verify induction, competency, wages and working-hours records

Participants can assess environmental impacts and translate sustainability requirements into operational controls.

  • Rainforest Alliance requirements translated into farm, factory and management controls
  • Environmental aspect registers rank water, energy, waste and biodiversity impacts
  • Riparian buffers and habitat corridors protect watercourses and beneficial species
  • Water-balance calculations track abstraction, process use, recycling and effluent volumes
  • Energy audits identify boiler losses, dryer efficiency and fuel-saving actions
  • Waste hierarchy plans prioritise prevention, reuse, composting and permitted disposal
  • GHG inventories apply activity data, emission factors and reporting boundaries

Participants can prepare climate adaptation actions based on production, weather and resource risks.

  • Climate risk registers score drought, intense rainfall, frost and heat stress
  • Scenario planning tests yield, quality and cashflow under changing weather patterns
  • Shade trees, mulching and soil organic matter improve moisture retention
  • Water harvesting designs size ponds, drains and storage for seasonal deficits
  • Agroforestry choices assess competition, biodiversity value and farmer income
  • Climate adaptation plans assign actions, owners, dates and monitoring indicators

Participants can conduct internal checks, address findings and maintain a prioritised improvement plan.

  • Internal audits test evidence against standard clauses and site procedures
  • Nonconformity reports state requirement, evidence, cause, correction and corrective action
  • Root-cause analysis uses five whys and fishbone diagrams for recurring failures
  • Supplier assessment scorecards review traceability, labour, pesticide and quality controls
  • KPIs track yield, quality, safety, resource use and corrective-action closure
  • Seasonal improvement plans prioritise actions by risk, cost, owner and deadline
  • Management reviews convert performance data into documented operational decisions

Exercises and examples are adapted to each cohort's sectors and roles.

What you take back to work

  1. Tea value-chain control-point map
  2. Field scouting and integrated pest management template
  3. Green-leaf intake and factory process-control checklist
  4. Tea quality specification and lot-release template
  5. Sustainability risk and environmental aspect register
  6. Seasonal audit corrective-action improvement plan

Who should attend

  • Tea Estate Managers — responsible for crop performance, labour deployment and field controls
  • Factory Managers — accountable for green-leaf intake, processing consistency and food safety
  • Sustainability Managers — responsible for environmental, labour and certification evidence
  • Tea Quality Managers — need reliable tasting, grading, sampling and release systems
  • Agricultural Extension Officers — support smallholders with practical production improvements
  • Responsible Sourcing Specialists — assess supplier practices and buyer requirement compliance

Skills and tools covered

Tea agronomy managementFactory process controlTea quality assuranceIntegrated pest managementSustainability risk assessmentAudit corrective actions

Tools and standards

Rainforest Alliance Sustainable Agriculture Standard, HACCP, ISO 14001:2015, WHO Recommended Classification of Pesticides by Hazard

How the course runs

Training methodology

The course uses short instructor briefings, tea estate and factory cases, group analysis of field records, quality data and audit evidence, and facilitated simulations of operational decisions. Participants work with realistic examples such as pest outbreaks, leaf-intake failures, drying defects, worker welfare concerns and water-use issues. Trainers guide discussion around recognised standards and buyer expectations, then support each participant to prepare an application plan for their own estate, factory, supplier group or programme.

Requirements and prerequisites

Participants should have practical exposure to tea production, factory operations, agricultural extension, quality assurance, sustainability programmes or tea sourcing. They should understand basic crop production terms and be able to interpret simple production records, such as yield, input use or quality data. Prior experience with tea tasting, certification audits, laboratory testing or environmental reporting is useful but not required. The course does not require a degree in agronomy, engineering or food science, nor prior knowledge of ISO management systems.

A typical training day

08:30 – 10:30First session
10:30 – 10:45Refreshment break
10:45 – 12:30Second session
12:30 – 13:30Lunch and networking
13:30 – 15:00Third session
15:00 – 15:15Refreshment break
15:15 – 16:30Workshop and daily review

Live online deliveries follow the same structure in East Africa Time, with shorter screen blocks and longer breaks.

What the fee includes

  • Instruction by a practitioner facilitator
  • Full course workbook and materials
  • Exercise files, templates and case studies
  • Refreshments and lunch on classroom deliveries
  • Certificate of completion
  • Post-course application plan

Frequently asked questions

Participants should have some exposure to tea production, processing, sourcing, extension, quality or sustainability work. Specialist knowledge of tea tasting, certification audits or laboratory methods is not required.

Participants should bring a laptop if possible and may bring non-confidential examples of production records, audit findings or buyer specifications. Course materials and working templates are provided.

The course suits tea estate and factory managers, quality personnel, sustainability teams, extension officers and responsible sourcing specialists. It also suits programme managers supporting tea smallholders or producer organisations.

This course focuses on the technical and commercial realities of tea, from plucking standards and leaf handling to oxidation, tasting and tea buyer requirements. It links agronomy, factory operations, labour and environmental controls rather than treating them as separate subjects.

Participants leave with templates that can be adapted for their estate, factory, supplier group or development programme. The final module helps them prioritise actions by risk, cost, owner and deadline.

The programme contains ten modules taught in sequence across five training days, with about 6.5 contact hours daily. Time is divided among technical briefings, case analysis, group work, simulations and individual application planning.

Questions about this course?

Ask about dates, fees, group bookings or running it for your team. Our training team replies by email.

Ask on WhatsApp info@skillsetdevelopment.com

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