Ray Smuts
THAT ROOIBOS tea's rise to stardom is due in the main to ever more health-conscious consumers is evident and Cape Natural Tea Products is sharing in the success as the country stands poised to increase exports from 2 800 tons to 4 000 tons this year.
Owned jointly by 28 rooibos farmers who after deregulation of the industry broke away from the former Rooibos Tea Board, Cape Natural Tea Products has after only four years opened its new, much larger, production plant at Brackenfell near Cape Town.
The company, which also manufactures honeybush tea in the Langkloof and other herbal teas, is showing 40% growth per annum, symptomatic of the increase in demand for natural African products in export markets including lemon grass, rosehips and hibiscus.
Newly-appointed chairman Errol Wood believes the export market for indigenous African herbs is set to grow strongly, especially in North America and Europe.
