Factors Affecting Domestic Consumption of Tea in Tanzania: a Case of Ilala Municipal in Dar Es Salaam

Tea is a vital crop in Tanzania, playing a significant role in the country's socio-economic development by contributing to export earnings, providing employment and income to farmers and other stakeholders. Despites the importance of tea industry and the initiatives made by the Government of Tanzania to increase production, the industry still faces challenges such as low domestic consumption and heavy reliance on export markets, affecting the economy of tea sector in the country. To foster economic stability, it is crucial to develop the local Tanzanian tea market and reduce dependence on international markets. The aim of this research was to promote tea consumption in Tanzania through determination of factors causing low domestic consumption of tea in the country. Convenience sampling technique was used to obtain 400 respondents from Ilala District in Dar-es-Salaam. The data was collected through a structured questionnaire and analysed using descriptive statistics and multiple regression analysis. The results revealed that preference for alternative beverages over tea, scarcity of diverse choice for tea products in the local market, insufficient promotional activities and marketing campaigns on tea drinking influenced low consumption of tea in Tanzania. The study also revealed that 71.75% of respondents believe tea consumption can negatively impact their health such as high blood pressure, diabetes, and obesity, resulting in a decrease in their tea intake. Furthermore, the results revealed that age of consumers had a positive and significant influence on the amount of tea consumed, while the level of education and income had a negative and significant effect on the quantity consumed. More importantly, the results showed positive relationship between marketing mix strategy (product, place and promotion) and tea consumption, while price is negatively related to the tea consumption. In order to enhance tea consumption in Tanzania and increase the profitability of the tea industry, the study recommends policies encouraging product diversifications, health education, targeted segmentation strategies, and effective marketing strategies to capture opportunities in the local tea market.