Bumper tea production likely this year

FE Team | Published: August 26, 2007 00:00:00 | Updated: February 01, 2018 00:00:00

Jasim Uddin Haroon
The country's tea export is likely to be doubled this year due to higher production, thanks to a favourable weather, planters said.
They said the export of tea might reach nearly 7.0 million kilograms (kgs) this year against 3.0 million kgs in the previous year.
The target of tea production has been set at 58 million kgs for this year.
"We are expecting to achieve the target of tea production this season and tea export volume will definitely rise," said Shantanu Biswas, Chairman of Tea Traders Association of Bangladesh.
Shantanu Biswas, who is also General Manager of tea department of MM Ispahani Limited, told the FE that better weather had contributed to higher production this season.
Traders hinted that the local tea consumers also might pay lower prices for the beverage due to its higher supply in the market.
The domestic market consumed around 48 million kgs of tea last year.
Tea producers said the demand for tea might rise to around 50 million kgs this year.
A bumper production of 60 million kgs of tea was recorded in 2005.
The country's around 150 tea gardens, located mainly in greater Sylhet and Chittagong districts, were hit by drought in 2006 when production fell to 53.8 million kgs.
Bangladesh exports tea mainly to Pakistan, Afghanistan and Middle East countries.
The annual demand for tea in Pakistan is 130 million kgs while Bangladesh exports on an average three to four million kgs a year.
Bangladesh's tea has duty-free access to Pakistan under a bilateral agreement.
Company sources alleged that they had been facing problems in exporting tea to Pakistan due to lack of empty containers at the port.
Shipping lines sources, however, said that there was no shortage of empty containers at the Chittagong port.
But, the shipping lines are reluctant to carry tea due to low freight rate in Pakistan.
"Rather, feeder vessels are facing problem to take berth at Karachi port in Pakistan due to rush of vessels," Engineer SK Ghosh, executive director of QC Shipping Lines, told the FE over phone.
The auction price of tea last week ranged between US$ 1.25 and $ 1.40 a kg.