Hakuna Matacha — The Lion of Tencha Teas

OUR STORY

Africa leads the Matcha story.

🦁 Hakuna Matatcha is more than tea – it's Africa’s first fair-harvested, granite - stone - ground tencha - green - tea 🌱. We fuse the heritage of Japanese tea mastery with the unrivaled energy of African land and people. Every leaf is ethically grown, socially empowering local communities, and sustainably produced to uplift both people and planet. The result: a world-class superfood that is bold, clean, and globally disruptive. Africa doesn’t just join the Matcha story – it will leads it.

1
Fair-harvested Grown and picked under ethical, transparent conditions from the very first leaf.
2
Granite-stone-ground tencha Japanese stone-milling mastery applied to African-grown leaf.
3
People & planet Sustainable production that empowers local communities as much as the soil.

OUR HOME

Kenya: the tea powerhouse everyone underestimates.

The world already drinks Kenyan tea every day — it just doesn't know it. Kenya is one of the largest tea exporters on earth, with the land, the altitude, and above all the people to become matcha's next great origin. Almost nobody has connected those dots yet.

For us, that's not a spreadsheet insight — it's personal. Walter has spent years working on charitable projects in Kenya through Karibu World, long before Hakuna Matacha existed. Celestine was born and raised there. Building Africa's first stone-ground tencha in Kenya isn't a strategic pivot for us — it's a perfect match between the place, the purpose, and the people already living it.

Land potential

High

Kenya has about 200,000 ha of tea plantations. Selected and limited 5,000 ha (≈2.5%) will produce 1,500 t of matcha — around 10% of the global market by 2030.

Climatic suitability

Ideal

High altitudes (1,500–2,500 m), volcanic soil, and consistent rainfall — comparable to Japan's matcha regions.

Labor & know-how

Excellent

Over 600,000 smallholder farmers experienced in hand-picking; quality improvement easily achievable through training, where we take responsibility.

How we work with growers

Direct trade, not middlemen Long-term supply agreements straight with grower cooperatives, cutting out intermediaries so more of the price reaches the people who grow the leaf.

Training as investment, not control We fund training in tencha-specific hand-picking — the timing and technique the leaf needs — as a skill farmers keep, not a shortcut we own.

Real people, not wage labor Hand-picking is skilled craft, not outsourced labor. The people who do it are partners in the supply chain, not a line item.

Women in the fields Kenya's smallholder tea sector runs largely on women pickers. Our fair-trade commitment starts by recognizing who does the work.

THE FOUNDERS

Two people, two continents, one cup.

Walter

Founder & Serial Entrepreneur

Founded Hakuna Matacha to bring transparent, soil-first matcha sourcing to European markets. Leads vision, strategy, business scaling, supply chain, finance, and operations — drawing on experience building and scaling ventures across investment, energy, and infrastructure.

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Celestine

Co-Founder & Head of Sourcing Ethics & Sustainability

Co-founded Hakuna Matacha and leads organic sourcing ethics, compliance, and brand positioning — ensuring the product's story of origin, craftsmanship, and fair trade holds up from farm to market. Bridges Kenyan tea-growing communities with European consumer expectations through culturally grounded communication.

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LISTEN & READ

The matcha conversation, beyond our own story.

PODCAST EPISODE

The Rise of Matcha

A BBC food correspondent traces matcha's journey from centuries-old Japanese tradition to a full-blown social-media phenomenon — digging into the reported supply shortage, misconceptions around terms like "ceremonial grade," a report from a Kyoto tea farm, and a health-claims fact-check with a King's College London dietitian.

Presented by Leyla Kazim — The Food Programme, BBC Audio

Listen on Spotify

ARTICLE

Is matcha healthier than coffee?

A science journalist weighs matcha's calmer caffeine profile and fibre content against coffee's longer track record of research — concluding it's less about which drink is "healthier," and more about what suits you.

Dr Emily Leeming, PhD — Second Brain

Read the article