Tea industry hopeful 100m production by end of 2022

Tea industry insiders said that tea production may break the previous record by the end of the year, despite a lengthy workers' strike back in August.

The international tea auction has expanded the availability of tea straight from gardens.

Although production is expected to decline towards the end of the season, tea production has grown owing to adequate rainfall.

Earlier on October 24, 3.33 million kilograms (kg) of tea was delivered in the 25th auction.

Last year, this amount was 3.20 million kg of tea in the same auction.

Meanwhile, 3.56 million kg of tea was auctioned off last Monday at the 26th auction on October 31.

In the previous year's 26th auction, the amount was 3.46 million kg.

Earlier in August, the estates had demonstrated negative increases in tea supply for 5-6 straight auctions due to sustained labour strikes in the country's tea estates.

Bangladesh currently has 167 tea gardens. Chittagong just added another garden to its lists.

In addition to tea estates, small-scale tea production is practiced in the northern region.

The northern region produces around two-thirds of the country's total tea production.

However, the quality of tea produced in the country's hilly regions is the finest, thus tea from these gardens has an influence on market control.

According to Bangladesh Tea Board (BTB) sources, the tea board used to set a production target of 70-80 million kg in past years.

However, the plantations consistently produced 2 to 2.5 million kg more tea than the target.

As a result, the current season's tea production target has been set at a record 100 million kg.

Tea production in the current season is expected to exceed last season's record of around 95 million kg.

Stakeholders hopeful

Anjan Dev Burman, senior manager of National Brokers, one of the country's biggest tea brokers, said that tea production has naturally grown this season compared to the previous year.

The quantity of tea at the auction reduced significantly owing to the labour strike in August, but the gardens are still producing quality tea towards the end of the season due to enough rainfall in October.

He believes that if this trend continues, the country's tea production would set a new record.

According to tea industry insiders, the average price of tea per kg at a recent auction was less than Tk200.

However, a labour strike in August decreased supply at the auction, raising tea prices.

In recent auctions, every kilogram of tea was sold for between Tk210-Tk220.

The price of tea is meant to reduce at the conclusion of the auction season owing to quality.

However due to adequate rainfall in the region during the last month, the price of tea is trading over Tk200 per kg, as it does across the season.

Meanwhile, the country produced 14.7 million kg of tea in September, the highest in a month during 2022 so far.

In October, it experienced the second highest tea production of 14.58 million kg.

Tea production in September was higher than at any other time in history, owing to increased demand following the labor strike and tea storage in gardens.

In 2021, tea production in the first nine months (January-September) was 64.78 million kg.

As of this year's September, total production was 63.83 million kg.

However, due to favourable weather conditions in different regions of the country in October, as well as adequate rainfall, the new target of producing 100 million kg of tea from 167 gardens will be achievable, according to industry insiders.