MOQ tiers
| Tier | Quantity | Note |
|---|---|---|
| Trial | 500 kg LCL | — |
| Standard FCL | 1 × 20'FCL ≈ 22 MT | — |
| Programme | 3–6 × 20'FCL / season | — |
White Clover Seeds Exporter & Wholesale Supplier — 35+ Origins, 80+ Destinations
Kehkashan exports white clover (Trifolium repens) seeds from origin partners in New Zealand, Ireland, the USA, and Italy — supplied in bulk FCL or LCL with FOB Jebel Ali, CFR, or CIF terms to intensive-grazing pasture and dairy operations in 80+ destinations.
- 35+ origins
- 80+ destinations
- ISTA / OECD certified
- LC at sight (USD/EUR)
Reference image. Sample lots and product-specific photography available on RFQ.
Quick facts
- Scientific name
- Trifolium repens
- Also known as
- البرسيم الأبيض, клевер белый
- HS code
- 1209.22
- Common varieties
- Ladino, Huia, Regal
- Origins available
- New Zealand, Australia, Germany
- MOQ
- 1 × 20'FCL
- Pack sizes
- 25 kg PP bag
- Specs
- Purity: 99% min, Germination: 85% min
- Lead time
- 14–21 days from PO confirmation
- Incoterms
- FOB Jebel Ali · CFR · CIF · DAP
- Payment terms
- LC at sight · TT · DP
Specification & container math
FOB pricing bands (RFQ)
| Grade | Indicative range |
|---|---|
| European common | RFQ — entry tier |
| NZ Huia / Kopu II | RFQ — mid tier |
| USA Ladino / Regal | RFQ — premium tier |
Lead times — top destinations
| Discharge port | Transit | Incoterm |
|---|---|---|
| Auckland / Tauranga (FOB) | 0 days | FOB |
| Jebel Ali (UAE) | 28–35 days | CFR / CIF |
| Jeddah Islamic Port (KSA) | 32–40 days | CFR / CIF |
| Mombasa (Kenya) | 30–38 days | CFR / CIF |
| Hamburg (Germany) | 35–42 days | CFR / CIF |
- Packaging formats
- 25 kg PP bag
- Container capacity
- 20'FCL: 22 MT
Documentation set per shipment
Every container leaves UAE Free Zone with the document pack below. Additional certificates (Halal, SASO conformity, BRC, organic, FairWild, etc.) are added on request before vessel loading.
- Bill of Lading (BL) — original 3/3 set
- Commercial Invoice — UAE Free Zone issued
- Packing List with lot codes per pallet
- Certificate of Origin (CoO) — Dubai Chamber attested
- Phytosanitary Certificate — origin NPPO
- ISTA Certificate of Analysis (purity, germination, dodder)
- OECD Seed Scheme tag (for OECD-eligible varieties)
- Fall-dormancy declaration (alfalfa / clover only)
- Fumigation Certificate
- GMO / Non-GMO declaration
- Form A (GSP) where applicable
White clover seed origins: New Zealand, Oregon, Ireland, Australia
White clover seed is multiplied in New Zealand Canterbury, Oregon Willamette Valley, Ireland, southern Australia, and Germany. Kenyan Rift Valley and South African Drakensberg grazing dairies take New Zealand Huia and Demand. European seed distributors buy Irish and German common lots for pasture mixes. Turf and amenity blenders specify Oregon Ladino and microclover selections.
Ladino, Huia, Regal, Kopu II: white clover cultivars decoded
Ladino is the Italian-derived giant type multiplied in Oregon for hay and low-stocking dairies. Grasslands Huia is the 1960s New Zealand release still used as the medium-leaf benchmark in trials. Regal is a United States Ladino selection with better stolon survival. Kopu II and Demand are modern AgResearch lines bred for Friesian grazing.
ISTA purity, germination, and hard seed on white clover COAs
White clover has a thousand-seed weight near 0.6 grams, so purity is tested on a working sample and reported at 99 percent minimum. Germination runs 85 percent minimum, with hard seed 10 to 25 percent. Coated seed is declared with coating percentage and Rhizobium inoculation date. New Zealand lots carry the IHS scheme tag.
White clover for rotational grazing, turf, and pasture overseeding
Grazing dairies in Kenya, Rwanda, and the South African highveld oversow white clover into kikuyu and ryegrass paddocks for nitrogen and protein. Irish and Dutch seed distributors blend it at 2 to 4 kilograms per hectare into perennial ryegrass mixes. Golf courses, sports fields, and municipal amenity contractors use microclover in low-input turf.
Shipping white clover from Tauranga and Jebel Ali to buyers
New Zealand white clover loads at Tauranga or Auckland and reaches Jebel Ali in 28 to 35 days, Hamburg in 35 to 42 days. From Jebel Ali, onward legs run 5 to 8 days to Jeddah and 12 to 18 days to Mombasa. Coated seed is booked with humidity-controlled stowage below 35 degrees Celsius.
White clover seed pricing: what moves the FOB and CIF quote
White clover is quoted against an RFQ as FOB Tauranga, FOB Jebel Ali, CFR, or CIF destination. Tiers are European common, New Zealand Huia and Kopu II, and Oregon Ladino and Regal. Coating and Rhizobium inoculation add a per-kilogram uplift. Container count, harvest timing after January-to-March threshing, and contract versus spot complete the quote.
Quality assurance steps on every white clover shipment
A 500 gram to 1 kilogram sample with the origin ISTA report reaches the buyer. Coated lots include a bare-seed reference so the buyer can check germination independently of coating weight. After approval the proforma is issued against LC at sight or TT. Loading is photographed and seal numbers go on the packing list.
White clover container loading: 20-foot FCL, 40-foot HC, LCL
Bare white clover seed packs 22 metric tonnes into a 20-foot FCL in 25 kilogram PP bags and 26 tonnes into a 40-foot high-cube before road-weight limits apply. Coated seed doubles pack weight per hectare sown, so buyers plan volume by hectares rather than tonnes. LCL trials from 500 kilograms consolidate at Jebel Ali.
White clover import rules for Kenya, Saudi Arabia, and the EU
Kenya issues a KEPHIS plant import permit before shipment and inspects germination at Mombasa. Saudi Arabia requires a MEWA seed-import permit, SASO conformity, and an attested Certificate of Origin. European Union buyers need the cultivar on the EU Common Catalogue, an OECD certificate, and a fumigation certificate; treated seed carries an active-ingredient label.
Procurement-team questions
Answers to the questions buyers ask us most often during RFQ and trial-shipment evaluation.
- Small leaf, medium leaf, or large leaf — which white clover?
- Small-leaf (Pirouette, S184) is for intensive sheep grazing on tight rotations. Medium-leaf (Huia, Demand, Aran) is the dairy-pasture workhorse — most grazing programmes in NZ, Ireland and Australian SE specify medium-leaf white clover. Large-leaf (Ladino, Regal, Kopu II) is for cut-and-carry hay or low-stocking-rate dairy with longer regrowth windows. Match leaf size to stocking rate and rotation length.
- Why is NZ white clover priced at a premium?
- New Zealand white clover commands a premium because of: (1) the IHS / OECD seed-scheme purity protocol; (2) cleaner dodder and crop-disease status; (3) genetics specifically bred for intensive grazing under Friesian / Jersey dairy. NZ Kopu II and Demand routinely test 99.5% purity, 90% germination — versus 99% / 85% for European common lots.
- Can white clover be used in tropical Africa?
- White clover is cool-temperate. Tropical lowland Africa (West African coast, Congo basin, Tanzanian coast) is unsuitable — soil temperature kills the stand. Highland tropical Africa above 1,800 m (Kenyan Rift Valley, Ethiopian Bale, Rwandan / Burundian highlands, South African Drakensberg) supports good white clover stands. We route NZ Huia and Demand into these markets year-round.
- How is white clover seed coated?
- Most NZ-origin lots ship pre-inoculated with Rhizobium leguminosarum biovar trifolii plus a lime / molybdenum coating. Coating roughly doubles seed weight, so adjust your sowing rate calculation: 4–6 kg/ha bare seed equates to 8–12 kg/ha coated. Bare-seed lots are available on request for buyers running their own inoculation lines.
- What dispatch schedule do you recommend?
- For NZ origin into the Gulf or East Africa, plan PO 60–75 days ahead of intended sowing because of the long sea transit. NZ origin into Russia / EU plan PO 75–90 days ahead. European origin into the Gulf or East Africa plan PO 45–60 days ahead. We hold 5–10 MT safety stock of NZ Demand at Jebel Ali for spot orders.
Related buyer guides & trade briefs
Long-form guides written by the Kehkashan trade desk for buyers and procurement teams scoping origin trade-offs, variety codes, and documentation flows.
trade brief
Clover Seeds (Trifolium spp.) — Multi-Species Buyer's Guide 2026
Trade-desk reference for clover seed importers: Persian, Berseem, Red, White, Crimson — Pakistani and European origin economics, ISTA bands, dodder-freedom.
12 min readRead the guide →
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