Prospect of hitting tea production target gloomy this year
Sunday, 3 January 2010
Jasim Uddin Haroon
The country's tea output might fall short of target this year mainly due to unfavourable weather in the plant growing regions, tea planters told the FE.
Until November, the total tea production stood at 53.98 million kilogrammes (kg), but growers expect that 4.0 million kg more will be added to the total in the last month of harvest in December against the target of 60 million kg.
Tea gardens, which generally start harvest in January-February, produced 58.655 million kg in 2008.
Officials at the Bangladesh Cha Sangsad said poor rainfall during March-April and September-October was the main reason behind such fall in tea production.
GS Dhar, a senior official of the Sangsad said: "Tea production needs good rainfall. But this year the rainfall was insufficient."
The country's 163 tea gardens produced 60 million kg of tea in 2005, a bumper in recent years, mainly due to favourable weather.
Tea production suffered in 2006 when gardens were hit by drought and production fell to 53.8 million kg.
A senior official of the Duncan Brothers said: "We're trying our best to grow more, we are planting each year, but bad weather is obstructing us from getting a higher yield."
However, insiders said many gardens are not expanding their gardening areas in line with the directives of the Bangladesh Tea Board (BTB).
BTB has instructed tea gardens to raise their plantation area at a rate of 2.5 per cent each year to cope with the growing demand for tea at home and abroad.
"Only reputed gardens, like Ispahani, Duncan and M Ahmed Tea Estates, are complying with the government order," one senior planter said.
However, they said the short fall will not hamper the domestic market as local consumption of the beverage is around 48 million kg annually.
Bangladesh's tea gardens, located mainly in greater Sylhet and Chittagong districts, export to Pakistan, Afghanistan and Middle East after meeting the local demand for the popular drink.
The country's tea output might fall short of target this year mainly due to unfavourable weather in the plant growing regions, tea planters told the FE.
Until November, the total tea production stood at 53.98 million kilogrammes (kg), but growers expect that 4.0 million kg more will be added to the total in the last month of harvest in December against the target of 60 million kg.
Tea gardens, which generally start harvest in January-February, produced 58.655 million kg in 2008.
Officials at the Bangladesh Cha Sangsad said poor rainfall during March-April and September-October was the main reason behind such fall in tea production.
GS Dhar, a senior official of the Sangsad said: "Tea production needs good rainfall. But this year the rainfall was insufficient."
The country's 163 tea gardens produced 60 million kg of tea in 2005, a bumper in recent years, mainly due to favourable weather.
Tea production suffered in 2006 when gardens were hit by drought and production fell to 53.8 million kg.
A senior official of the Duncan Brothers said: "We're trying our best to grow more, we are planting each year, but bad weather is obstructing us from getting a higher yield."
However, insiders said many gardens are not expanding their gardening areas in line with the directives of the Bangladesh Tea Board (BTB).
BTB has instructed tea gardens to raise their plantation area at a rate of 2.5 per cent each year to cope with the growing demand for tea at home and abroad.
"Only reputed gardens, like Ispahani, Duncan and M Ahmed Tea Estates, are complying with the government order," one senior planter said.
However, they said the short fall will not hamper the domestic market as local consumption of the beverage is around 48 million kg annually.
Bangladesh's tea gardens, located mainly in greater Sylhet and Chittagong districts, export to Pakistan, Afghanistan and Middle East after meeting the local demand for the popular drink.