Standard trading basis

01 · Contracting party

The seller and contracting party is Meridian East Commodities FZCO, a company licensed in the DMCC Free Zone, Dubai, United Arab Emirates. All contracts are negotiated, concluded and signed in Dubai by an authorised signatory of the UAE company.

Origin sourcing, grading, warehousing and export formalities in Kenya are procured from licensed service providers under written service agreements. No such provider is a party to your sale contract, concludes contracts on behalf of Meridian East, or holds any authority to bind it. Your counterparty throughout is the UAE company named above.

02 · Governing law and disputes

Governing law and the arbitration forum, seat and procedure are specified in the sale contract and are confirmed in writing with your first enquiry. We contract on an internationally recognised basis and are open to discussing the buyer’s preferred forum before terms are agreed.

Where a contract is written on recognised trade-association terms, the quality, weight and arbitration provisions of those rules apply, subject to any express amendment in the contract. The applicable rule set is named in the contract.

03 · Delivery terms

We quote FOB Mombasa as standard, and CIF or CFR to a named destination port on request. Incoterms® 2020 apply unless the contract states otherwise. Container stuffing, sealing and consolidation are completed at origin; goods move from Mombasa to the destination port without intermediate handling.

04 · Quality — tea

• Grade. Contract grade is stated using East African auction convention (BP1, PF1, PD, DUST1, BMF, orthodox leaf grades).
• Standard. Black tea supplied to the definition and general requirements of ISO 3720, unless a different standard is specified by the buyer.
• Approved sample. Quality is contracted as per approved sample. The sealed approval sample is the reference against which the shipment is judged.
• Moisture. As specified in the contract; tested at origin before loading.
• Contaminants. Certificates of analysis for pesticide residues and heavy metals are available on request against a stated destination standard — EU MRLs, GCC standards, or GB standards for China. Name the destination regime in your enquiry so we test to the right one before shipment, not after.

05 · Quality — coffee

• Grade. Kenyan grades by screen size and density (AA, AB, PB, C, E, TT); Ugandan arabica and washed fine robusta by screen.
• Moisture. Contracted within a stated band, typically 10–12%, measured on the ISO 6673 basis or another method named in the contract.
• Defects. Contracted to a stated maximum defect count per 300 g green sample.
• Cup. Where a cup profile or minimum score is contracted, it is confirmed against the pre-shipment sample before loading.
• Traceability. Each lot is traceable to auction lot number, and to cooperative, factory or estate.

06 · Sampling and approval

Samples are drawn and dispatched against your written specification before contract. Where quality is contracted against an approved sample, a pre-shipment sample is drawn from the packed lot and, if requested, held for comparison. Nothing ships without the buyer's approval on the cup.

07 · Weights

Contracts are on net shipped weight at origin unless the contract states landed weight. Weight is certified by the inspection agency named in the contract. The weight franchise stated in the contract applies; loss beyond the franchise is claimable on the terms of the contract.

08 · Inspection

Independent pre-shipment inspection of quality, weight and container condition is carried out at origin by an independent inspection agency named in the contract. The buyer may appoint and pay for its own inspector in addition, and may attend loading.

09 · Packing and marking

Tea in multiwall paper sacks or as specified; coffee in 60 kg jute bags or as specified. Marks, lot identification and shipping marks are applied to the buyer's instruction. Container liners, desiccant and food-grade certification are provided where the contract requires them.

10 · Documents

A standard document set comprises: commercial invoice; packing list; full set of clean on-board bills of lading; certificate of origin; KEPHIS phytosanitary certificate; certificate of quality and weight; lot traceability sheet; and any certificate of analysis, fumigation certificate or destination-specific certificate the contract requires. Additional documents required by a letter of credit are provided if named at the time of contract.

11 · Payment

• Standard. Irrevocable letter of credit at sight, issued or confirmed by a bank acceptable to the seller, available with a UAE bank against the contract documents.
• Alternative. Cash against documents, or telegraphic transfer against a documentary presentation, where agreed in advance.
• Settlement currency. USD, or RMB where the contract and the buyer's bank permit.
• Open account terms are not offered on a first transaction.

12 · Title and risk

Risk passes in accordance with the agreed Incoterm. Title passes on full payment of the contract price unless the contract provides otherwise. Goods are the property of Meridian East Commodities FZCO at the point of sale; no third party holds title in the chain between origin purchase and delivery to the buyer.

13 · Claims

Quality and weight claims must be notified within the period stated in the contract, with supporting inspection evidence, and are determined against the approved sample and the certified origin figures. A claim outside the contractual window and without independent evidence cannot be assessed.

14 · Force majeure

Standard force majeure provisions apply, covering events beyond reasonable control including auction suspension, port closure, export prohibition and vessel cancellation. Notification obligations and the consequences of prolonged interruption are set out in the contract.

15 · Compliance

We run counterparty due diligence on every buyer before contracting. Entity documentation is provided on request for the same purpose. We do not trade with parties subject to applicable sanctions, and contracts include sanctions and anti-bribery undertakings on both sides.