Port St Johns, central to the Wild Coast

http://www.busrep.co.za/index.php?fSectionId=566&fArticleId=3937148

Sales of black tea, also known as Ceylon, had been fairly static in the local market over the past 20 years, but the rooibos category continued to grow on the back of the consumer health consciousness trend. Kelsey expected the buyout to increase rooibos market share by 5 percentage points to 20 percent.

He said the once troubled Eastern Cape tea growers Magwa and Majola were proving to be "very successful suppliers from our side".

Magwa, formerly owned by the Transkei government, reopened in 2004 and benefited from a cash injection by Germany's MAN Ferrostaal as part of the arms deal offset programme. This was after it went into bankruptcy following reports of financial mismanagement that included senior management allegedly going on a R10 million spending spree.