Sri Lankan tea needs to look for new markets
The search for new markets for Sri Lankan tea will be a high priority for tea exporters, Chair person, S r i L a n k a Te a B o a r d , J a n a k i Kuruppu said.
“We are looking at all possible markets. Even though we have a presence in the US market, we can do more. However the funds allocated by the gover nment for this purpose is enough for the plans which are currently in place, but naturally with more money in the budget, we could do more in ter ms of marketing,” she said.
Kuruppu made this observation o n t he i naugurat i o n o f t he f i r s t inter national forum on tea yesterday. The 20th session of the Food a nd Ag r i c ul t ur a l Org a ni z at i o n’s Inter-gover nmental Group on Tea which saw more than 100 delegates from over 25 countries in attend - ance.
The need for diversification of Sri Lanka’s expor t markets arose over the course of 2011 with severe d i s r u p t i o n s i n o n c e s t a b l e markets due to events such as the Arab Spri ng, Euro- z one c r i s i s and t he March earthquake that hit Japan; where Sri Lankan black tea was the market leader.
More recently, escalating diplomatic tensions between the U.S and Iran; another major buyer of Sri Lankan tea, contributed to fears over the future of tea exports.
Exports of Sri Lankan tea to the Middle East annually accounts for approximately 78% of total exports, with Russia being the single largest buyer of Sri Lankan tea.
Such crisis occur red in the back o f s t i f f c o mpet i t i o n f o r marke t share from lower cost tea expor ters from countries like Kenya and Vietnam, amongst others in addit i o n t o g r o w i n g f e a r s o ve r t h e potential impact of climate change in tea growing countries.
Neve r t h e l e s s , Ku r u p p u ma i n - tained that in spite of such challenges, the Sri Lankan tea industry remains healthy.
“Year 2012 is special for Ceylon tea which is now in its 145th year o f c o mme r c i a l p r o d u c t i o n . We have come a long way since then, par ticularly with last year generating a revenue of US$ 1.49 billion; the highest ever recorded figure,” Kuruppu pointed out.
Notably, Minister of Plantations, Mahinda Samarasinghe, who was the chief guest at the inauguration of the forum stated that Sri Lanka wo u l d wo rk t ow a r d s c o mply i n g with new environmental and ethic a l s t a ndards t hat a re be i ng put into place in the tea industry.
“Al l t he s e i s s ue s wil l b e g ive n pr i o r i t y. We a re wil l i ng t o s hare infor mation with you so you can benefit from Sri Lanka being tuned t o t he new c r i t e r i a . We c a n a l s o lear n from others who are participating. So, it’s a two-way street,” Samarasinghe said.
He also called for the initiation of a se parate forum under the auspices of the FAO, to be org aniz ed exclusively for tea expor ting nations to lay their own platfor m.
“Whilst it is important to address the issues of consumer countries, it is also equally important to have a forum that deals specifically with tea producer specific issues as this will help us to coordinate ef fectively which is a win-win situation for consumers as well” he said.
Samarasinghe further stated that the tea industry remains an area of high importance to the Sri Lankan gover nment and in recognition of this, he had already discussed with the President the possibility of providing more funds for research and development in the field and further assistance to small holders, who account for as much as 76% of tea production.
Mea n whi l e, p r i o r t o t h e c o mmencement of the forum, a se par a t e me e t i n g o n t h e i mp a c t o f cl i mate chang e on t he gl obal t e a industry took place.
“Climate change was the major t h e me o f ye s t e r d ay ’s me e t i n g s . All countries have felt the impact o f c l i mat e c h a n g e a n d t h e n e e d t o wo rk o n s o l u t i o n s . T h u s , a l l c o unt r i e s were i n a g re e ment o n the need to share infor mation in order to mitig ate adverse ef fects,” C h a i r m a n o f S r i L a n k a Te a Research Board, Dr. S.S. B. D. G. Jayawardena said.