Tea Earns Rs 113bn during First Nine Months of 2010 for Sri Lanka

31st October 2010, www.island.lk, By Steve A. Morrell

Earning from tea surged to Rs. 113 billion during the first nine months of this year, which is an all time high. So too dollar earnings at US$ 995 million being the highest ever figure for the ten month period. These are quoted facts from the weekly tea market report of Asia Siyaka Tea Brokers.

Russia/ CIS and Middle East continue to support Ceylon Tea, except Egypt. We have yet to re-capture the Pakistan market lost to Kenya, and UK, also lost to Kenya. All well and good but what of the rest of the world? The question could be asked ‘Have their taste acquisitions no included Ceylon Tea?’ and ‘Why?’ Tea shippers are collectively on record to have said ‘We buy and sell’. And our responsibility would end there.’

Seemingly the main reason for EU countries to shun Ceylons was price. The exclusivity of a Ceylon Tea Cuppa does not hold that degree of clout any more; but given such negativity and Ministerial innovation we hopefully could look forward to more positive times when budgetary proposals emerge.

The Minister of Plantation Industries, Mahinda Samarasinghe, said about ten days ago that he was concerned with the standard of green leaf from small holder origins and would bring to bear effective legislation to correct the retrograde trend that gradually became accepted norm. ‘This would have to stop’ he said.

Also reported by Asia Siyaka, bulk tea exports had shrunk to 26%. Packeted tea exports rose to 61%. ‘Good marker to this changing trend’, given value addition positive shift in marketing was encouraging, tea sources said.

As reported by us about one month ago resurgence of automation at the auctions again surfaced recently. Indian auction centers have had incessant problems and the switch had not been received well.

Colombo is still reputedly the best tea auction center in the world usually handling about 7 million kilos each week in just two days. An extremely efficient system, and more so totally transparent in its dealings. ‘The question was asked ‘Why mess with something well organized merely for the sake of change’. Director Lanka Commodity Brokers (LCBL) Brian Baptist who visited India at the time is reported to have said, (These columns carried what he had to say), that although Indian auction centers had changed to automation, it was not working smoothly.

However according to the LCBL Tea market report last week this subject surfaced again. Their comment was, ‘We are watching and most probably will introduce automation to pre and post auction operations.’

We also have had some suggestive comment that the Sri Lanka Tea Board and Sri Lanka Tourism pool their options for mutual benefit. That there should now be greater coordination to promote interest in tea and combine such with the exclusive scenic beauty of the hills. Private companies have already combined their visitor destinations to project quite that image. They did this when times were bad. But now that tourist traffic is steadily increasing the ‘Tea and Tourism’, tag line could have effective prominence.