Festus Ronoh

Seasoned agricultural manager with over 13 years of progressive leadership experience across large-scale tea estates, out grower networks and agribusiness finance. Expert in driving double-digit yield improvements, delivering multi-million-shilling cost savings, and securing top-tier sustainability certifications (Rainforest Alliance, Sustainable Agriculture Standard). Proven track record of integrating mechanized harvesting, precision agronomy, and data-driven decision-making through ERP, IoTea and GIS tools to optimize resource use and boost profitability.

Proficient at building high-performing multidisciplinary teams, negotiating with unions and senior stakeholders, and championing climate-smart practices that enhance soil health and farmer livelihoods. Passionate about aligning commercial objectives with environmental stewardship to create resilient, future-ready agricultural production systems.

Area Manager at Browns Plantations East Africa PLC (formerly Lipton Teas and Infusions Ltd.) (2025-09 – 2026-03)

• Ensuring monthly spend of KES 27.9 M versus a budget of KES 38.8 M, achieving a 10 % variance under budget while maintaining service levels across 12,000 ha of tea estate.
• Reducing overtime from 7 % to 3 % through precise labour planning, shifting 70 % of staff to harvesting roles and introducing a performance-linked incentive scheme.
• Propagating 600 000 new tea varieties and replanting 65 ha, targeting a yield increase to over 9 000 kg MT/ha within three years, supported by GIS-driven site selection.
• Implementing integrated Kilimo Bora activities that lift yields by 10 % and maintain pest loss below 0.5 % by deploying biocontrol agents and precision-spraying.
• Setting performance targets that achieve 95 % productivity per plucker, a 10 % reduction in weeding cost and 89 % green-leaf quality delivery, monitored via real-time dashboards.
• Managing green-leaf logistics, fuel-wood plantations and asset maintenance to support uninterrupted supply to factories, cutting transit time by 12 % and fuel consumption by 8 %.
• Leading cross-functional collaborations with senior managers, finance, HR, unions and R&D to align estate operations with corporate strategy, resulting in a unified 5-year sustainability roadmap.

Outgrowers Services and New Tea Development Manager at Ekaterra Tea PLC (formerly Unilever Tea Kenya) (2022-02 – 2025-08)

• Registered 2 255 new outgrower farmers, driving a 36 % increase in green-leaf volume and raising output to 1 713 t in 2023 through targeted extension workshops.
• Prepared farms for Rainforest Alliance audits, achieving 100 % certification and raising compliance scores from 82 % to 95 % by 2025 via a structured corrective-action framework.
• Monitored KPIs such as yield variance, turnaround time and quality bands, maintaining 90 % green-leaf grade and <2 h farm-to-factory delivery through mobile data capture.
• Resolved major grievances by expanding transport fleet from 6 to 17 trucks, advancing payment dates to the 5th of each month and cutting leaf rejections from 10 % to 3 % with a new quality-control protocol.
• Managed a KES 12 M annual outgrower budget, introducing SMS weigh-in reporting and on-demand printing to generate measurable cost efficiencies of 7 % year-on-year.
• Introduced a farmer-lead digital advisory platform that delivered agronomic recommendations, resulting in a 12 % increase in average per-farm yields.

Divisional Assistant Manager at Unilever Tea Kenya Ltd (2015-01 – 2022-02)

• Achieved a 24 % reduction in operational spend by introducing mechanized harvesting, lowering cost per kg from KES 15 to KES 7 and extending machine life through predictive maintenance.
• Improved green-leaf quality, raising 2-leaf-plus-bud proportion from 23 % to 35 % and reducing hard-stalks from 2.4 % to 1.1 % via refined plucking standards and real-time quality audits.
• Constructed 3 km of new estate roads and maintained 23 km of existing roads, reducing vehicle breakdowns by 18 % and ensuring timely leaf delivery during peak seasons.
• Oversaw fuel-wood plantation management, increasing output to 3 200 CBM from 2 800 CBM through improved infilling, species selection and protective fencing.
• Implemented a lean-six-sigma inventory system for agro-chemicals, cutting stock-out incidents by 30 % and saving KES 1.2 M annually.
• Led a cross-functional safety campaign that reduced workplace incidents by 40 % and earned the estate the National Safety Excellence Award (2019).
• Mentored a cohort of 15 junior supervisors, 10 of whom were promoted to senior roles within two years, strengthening the talent pipeline.

Assistant Field Manager at Unilever Tea Kenya Ltd (2013-07 – 2014-12)

• Raised yield per hectare from 3 589 kg MT to 3 972 kg MT and increased operator productivity from 180 kg to 220 kg per day through optimized planting geometry and targeted fertilizer regimes.
• Reduced production cost per kg from KES 80 to KES 72 by implementing precision fertilizer application, integrated pest management and mechanized weeding.
• Produced 3 200 CBM of fuel wood, up from 2 800 CBM, by enhancing infilling and safeguarding plantations with community-based fire-watch teams.
• Introduced a field-level data capture mobile app that reduced reporting lag from 48 h to 6 h, enabling faster decision-making.
• Co-ordinated a soil-health monitoring program that identified micronutrient deficiencies, leading to a 5 % yield boost after corrective liming.
• Facilitated weekly knowledge-exchange sessions with outgrowers, improving adoption of best-practice agronomy and reducing pest incidence by 12 %.

Relationship Officer - Agriculture Lending at Equity Bank Ltd Kenya (2013-05 – 2013-07)

• Appraised 60 agricultural clients, resulting in 43 approved loans totaling KES 2.3 M, with a focus on smallholder tea and horticulture enterprises.
• Disbursed loans with a 95 % performing portfolio and maintained non-performing loans below 5 % through rigorous post-disbursement monitoring.
• Managed an agricultural loan book of KES 5 M, reducing non-performing loans from 8 % to under 5 % by instituting a farmer-co-operative guarantee model.
• Collaborated with the agronomy department of a local university to provide technical advisory services to loan recipients, enhancing crop yields by an average of 8 %.
• Designed a financial literacy workshop series for borrowers, increasing repayment punctuality from 78 % to 92 % within three months.
• Implemented a digital loan tracking system that cut processing time by 40 % and improved reporting accuracy for senior management received the outstanding Service award for exceeding quarterly loan growth targets by 15 %.

Bachelor of Agribusiness Management in Agribusiness Management – Egerton University (2011)