Sri Lanka’s tea production, which, for the first time after 15 months grew, albeit from a low base in February 2023, nonetheless sharply fell last month (March 2023), Forbes and Walker Tea Brokers’ today’s (Wednesday 19 April 2023) data showed.
Scarred first by President Gotabaya Rajapaksa’s chemical fertiliser import ban effective from April 2021 to November 2021 and subsequently, though the ban was lifted, the removal of the fertilizer subsidy , in particular urea, altogether, saw tea production, last month (March 2023) over March 2022 fall by 3.09 per cent (0.68 million kilos (kg)) to 21.34 million kg and March 2023 over March 2021 by 25.94 per cent (7.47 million kg) to 21.34 million kg, Forbes data showed.
Consequently, tea production in first quarter (1Q) 2023 over that of 1Q 2022 declined by 7.26 per cent (4.58 million kg) to 58.52 million kg and tea production, 1Q 2023 over 1Q 2022 fell by 21.46 per cent (15.99 million kg) to 58.52 million kg.
Tea was Sri Lanka’s fourth largest foreign exchange earner last year (2022), behind garments, remittances and ‘IT and IT Enabled Services Exports (ITES),’ latest official data (Central Bank of Sri Lanka and Export Development Board) showed.