New technology, new types of tea essential :

Lanka's tea industry would continue to thrive

By P. Krishnaswamy

Sri Lanka's tea industry with the world's longest history of export production is still sustainable and would continue to contribute substantially to the national economy in spite of the many challenges faced in recent years, a cross-section of those engaged in the production and export of the industry told the Sunday Observer.

They were optimistic that the industry, which stood the test of time for over 140 years, would thrive, but policy makers should contemplate on future programs to address the high cost of production, low yield per acre, the changing weather patterns that impact on the industry and the acute labour shortage. A different model to tie-up production with labour costs, as practised in other tea-producing countries, should be given serious thought, they said.

An analysis of climate data in recent years clearly revealed a climate change pattern as monthly rainfall was erratic in all tea growing regions, a research professional of the Tea Research Institute (TRI) said. Monthly rainfall during the North-East monsoon had dropped considerably in all regions. The number of dry days had increased significantly, contributing to low crop yields, he said. All in all, it could be summarised that a noticeable change in weather parameters occurred in some years in the recent past, contributing to significant crop losses, he said.

The tea industry crisis started in 2008 and continued through the first quarter of 2009. Tea auction sales and prices started improving during the second quarter of 2009 due to government policy interventions, financial assistance extended to the small holder sector through the fertiliser subsidy and low interest bank loans to the Regional Plantation Companies (RPC) and private tea factory owners.

Jayantha Keragala, Managing Director, Ceylon Tea Marketing (Pvt) Ltd, a leading tea exporting company, said that global warming and the changing weather patterns have impacted on the industry in recent years.

Finding new cultivars to withstand the changing weather patterns is a primary need. Finding adequate funding to the TRI and strengthening it will go a long way in making the tea industry sustainable, he said.

Many scientists who played a big role in identifying suitable cultivars have resigned and gone for overseas jobs because the remuneration packages which they received were comparatively low.

Tea smallholders should be given incentives and assistance for following a proper agricultural management system for conserving soil conditions, as presently done by the corporate sector- the RPC - considering the fact that they produce almost 70 percent of export quality tea.

Replanting subsidy

He welcomed the Government's decision announced under the last budget to increase the replanting subsidy from Rs.300,000 to Rs.350,000 per hectare from 2013 to encourage replanting among smallholders. But the RPCs were incurring considerably more expenditure on replanting, he pointed out.

Tea production in Kenya is 3,000 - 4,500 Kg per acre, almost double that of our production. The best method for boosting production is to tie up production to labour costs or placing tea land in charge of the labourers, as practised in Kenya, so that they will have a commitment towards higher production, he said. The labour shortage could also be overcome if this is done because it would be an inducement to the younger generation who now wants to distance themselves from plantation jobs.

Most Sri Lankan tea exporters now focus on adding more value to exports rather than exporting raw tea, other sources said. The health benefits of tea should be the main focus of propaganda for boosting tea exports, the sources said.

The name 'Ceylon Tea' or 'Sri Lankan Tea' is still regarded as a sign of quality throughout the world. The Manganese and Potassium in a cup of tea help maintain the body's fluid balance. Besides these ingredients, tea contains a unique amino acid, theanine, which has a relaxing effect on humans and also assists the natural immune response to infection. The modest amount of caffeine in tea also acts as a mild mood enhancer.

Perhaps, the most significant health-promoting properties of tea lie in the antioxidants or 'flavonoids' it contains. Antioxidants are compounds that help remove harmful toxins from the bloodstream, and tea contains uniquely high concentrations of them. Research has shown that consuming such antioxidants can lower the risk of heart disease, strokes and cancer.

There are also indications that antioxidants in tea may help protect against Alzheimer's disease and age-related memory impairment. Black and green tea contain higher levels of antioxidants than common fruits or vegetables. Even if we disregard extravagant, scientifically unsupported claims, the established health benefits of tea are numerous. Many of these benefits are preventive, suggesting that a few cups of tea a day can help stave off heart disease, diabetes, hypertension and many forms of cancer, they said.

Increasing costs

The cost of tea production is increasing while the market demands lower prices. Where modern technology related to tea production is concerned, the cost of production is very high in comparison with other agricultural products. Ceylon Tea is consumed by many tea lovers all over the world, especially in Europe, Asia and the Middle East. However, for the product to remain competitive among the global tea exporters, we must focus on new strategies. In addition to the quality standards maintained in the conventional tea industry, the percentage of value addition to the product should be gradually increased, to give a different product to the market. It helps to create high competition among core competitors. Value addition should be executed in a manner to fulfil strong consumer requirements and environmental protection. Using an eco-green system in production to combat global warming, maintaining biodiversity in plantations, offering social responsibility to the workers, convenience and sensory satisfaction are some of them, they said.

Value addition can be done initially by primary production procedures. Organic and bio-dynamic production methods add value to the tea, as a bulk production. The best value addition that could be done is the conversion of tea production to organic tea which is about 100 percent against 2.5 percent for conventional tea.

Demand for organic products is rapidly growing mainly due to health concerns of consumers in the developed importing countries. The important thing is changing market patterns and strategies towards other sectors such as Europe, North America, Canada and Japan which will result in minimising the high risk of market domination by CIS and the Middle East and enjoying higher revenue from tea exports to secure Western markets mainly in value added tea. Tea in bags in many forms has become popular because of convenience and it can be considered as an effective form of value addition, the sources pointed out.

A strong foundation should be laid by the Sri Lanka Tea Board to support and guide local producers to reach the needy quality requirements, by introducing Ceylon quality certificate for the long-term sustainability of Sri Lanka's tea industry. Installing new technology is now more essential than ever before, to introduce new types of tea for the special niche markets, they said.