Discontent brews among tea exporters hit by double whammy

Many in the tea industry, including some players, are openly unhappy with recent government policy decisions, which they suspect would threaten the sustainability of the industry in the long term.

The major concern is the chemical fertiliser ban which has already forced farmers across the country to take to the streets in recent weeks to protest against it saying their yield rate has decreased significantly due to non availability of chemical fertiliser.

The tea industry is no exception either as some of the leading tea exporting companies rang alarm bells saying that the impact would be fully felt by next month. In addition to this came another circular issued by the Tea Board recently regarding the re- export of imported tea.

According to the circular, all tea importers and exporters are instructed to blend imported green tea fannings with a minimum of thirty percent of Ceylon Tea when re- exporting. The same applies to CTC tea- processing black tea as well.

The circular which came into effect last month stressed that a minimum thirty percent value addition should be achieved at the point of re-export.

Considering the recent developments in the industry, many wonder whether the government, which claimed to do good through these initiatives is actually doing the reverse, particularly for small scale tea exporters who played a major role in bringing foreign revenue even when the country was under continuous lockdowns in the past.