Sale 7 | Ep 105 | 18 Feb 2023

• Assam Branch of the Indian Tea Association holds Annual General Body Meeting.
• Frost-induced damage at Kanan Devan Hills Plantation Ltd. in Munnar was reported to be severe.

India Price Watch

By Aravinda Anantharaman

The 132nd Annual General Meeting of the Assam Branch of the Indian Tea Association was held at Jorhat on 18th February. Chairperson Nayantara Palchoudhuri spoke at the event and highlighted the industry’s problems. While exports and prices increased marginally in 2022, Palchoudhuri was quoted as saying that a further increase in production is not an option. Instead, an increase in prices and a sustained emphasis on quality is necessary. She added that introducing a minimum floor price could facilitate fair discovery. East Mojo

Tea Prices

Sale 7 saw 5,231 tons of tea, with 79% sold. The top 3 grades remain BP, followed by BOPSM and BOP. North India saw better demand this week for orthodox tea, with 90% sold for an average price of Rs 160. CTC also saw improved sales with 82% sale volume. Some Darjeeling on offer was picked up. Prices improved over last week, except for Darjeeling. The Middle East continued to be active for Exports in Kolkata. 

Tea Price charts, courtesy TSigma Consultancy

The south Indian auctions saw a decrease in sales from the previous week. Prices were largely unchanged. Kanan Devan Hills Plantation Ltd. in Munnar has reported an expected decline in yield as the recent frost attack has caused the company’s wilting of tea plants across 550 hectares. Media reports say that the last time this extent of damage was seen here was in 2014, when 800 hectares of tea bushes were destroyed by frost.

Weather & Climate Change

The weather in Upper Assam is forecast to be mostly cloudy with light to moderate rainfall. Darjeeling is expected to see some rainfall. No rainfall is predicted in the Nilgiris. Munnar saw sub-zero temperatures again last week, which, coupled with higher daytime temperatures, destroyed tea crops. 

Source: India Meteorological Department

Sale 6 | Ep 104 | 11 Feb 2023

After presenting the West Bengal state budget on Feb. 15, the finance minister announced that the government would formulate a policy to grant eligible tea garden workers land rights.

• West Bengal presents its state budget with some attention to tea.
• Good demand in Cochin and Guwahati auctions
• Weather remains dry across India

India Price Watch

By Aravinda Anantharaman

The West Bengal state budget was presented on Feb. 15. West Bengal’s Finance Minister, Chandrima Bhattacharya, announced that the government would formulate a policy to grant eligible tea garden workers land rights. North Bengal, including Darjeeling and Jalpaiguri, has nearly 1.5 million people living on tea estates, demanding land rights. Tea estates here are leased to producers and companies by the government.

The budget has also considered the Indian Tea Association’s request for exemption from payment of cess and agricultural income tax for the next two financial years.

The budget has lacked in regularising the land status of small farmers who converted to tea planting after 2001. Without regularisation, these tea farmers cannot avail of any benefits available to the industry. Telegraph India

Tea Prices

An uneventful week at auctions. Sale 6 saw 8,467 tons of tea at the auctions, with 77% of the tea sold. Most of the tea on offer was CTC. The top selling grade was BP, followed by BOPSM and BOP. 

Kolkata saw good demand for all tea grades. The Middle East and CIS countries were active for Orthodox tea, while exporters and local buyers were active for Darjeeling. Prices were similar to last week, except for Darjeeling, which saw some increase. Guwahati saw good demand with western India active. Sale volumes and prices were similar to the previous week.

Cochin continued to see good demand in the south, with a 93% sale volume. Dust and Fannings were the grades that topped the charts. AV Thomas and SupplyCo were active. Coonoor saw a reduced sale volume this week, but prices remained similar to Sale 5.

Weather & Climate Change

The weather has been largely dry across India. It’s expected to remain partly cloudy and dry over Assam—no rainfall expected in West Bengal, Kangra, and the Nilgiris.

Source: India Meteorological Department

Sale 5 | Ep 103 | 28 January 2023

Darjeeling tea planters have expressed concerns over the rampant influx of teas from Nepal for several years. Disappointed to see no allocation in the Union Budget, planters and their supporters in Parliament urged the Tea Board of India and the Commerce Ministry to control imports from Nepal while ensuring proper food safety (FSSAI) checks.

? Nilgiris small tea farmers face losses following recent heavy frost, which has hampered harvest.
? Good demand at auctions in Kolkata and Cochin

Sale 5 – 21 January 2023

Darjeeling tea planters have resumed their demands to control imports from Nepal. Member of the Parliament from Darjeeling, Raju Bista, raised the issues concerning unchecked imports and lack of sufficient testing of these teas, which is having a significant impact on the GI-protected Darjeeling tea. The response is that the tea board will ensure that the directives related to declaring the origin of imports, storing imported tea, and properly labeling the origin of tea in the blend are done. – Telegraph of India

Farmers have claimed severe financial losses in the Nilgiris following the recent severe frost. Media reports say that tea gardens saw severe damage to the bushes. The harvest has been affected, and they are seeking compensation from the government.

Tea Prices

Sale 5 saw 11,345 tons of tea on offer at auctions with an average price of Rs 140 per kilo. This is a slightly higher volume compared to 2022 and 2021. The top three grades are BP, BOPSM, and BOP, followed by various Dust and Fanning grades. 

Kolkata saw good demand from major blenders for CTC and Dust grades, while the Middle East and CIS countries are still active for Orthodox. Auction averages were lower than Sale 4 but higher than or similar to Sale 5 in 2022. Guwahati was similar to the previous week, with volumes on sale slightly lower. 

In the south, Cochin saw good demand for Dust grades and CTC leaf, but prices were similar to Sale 4, with AV Thomas the top buyer. Coonoor also saw high demand for Dust and Fanning grades, similar to the previous week.

Weather & Climate Change

Weather has been dry over Upper Assam, with cloudy weather and light rain predicted over parts of the state. Some rain is expected in Darjeeling as well. Kangra is seeing light rain or snow in places.
Source: India Meteorological Department

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India’s tea industry response to the newly released Union budget is largely that of disappointment at the lack of attention to the sector. Darjeeling planters expressed surprise there is no funding for interventions to curb imports from Nepal to protect the status of Darjeeling tea.

• No extraordinary relief for the tea industry
• Darjeeling disappointed as no curbs on Nepal tea imports announced
• India sees cold wave in parts, with rain predicted in some tea regions

Sale 4 – 28 January 2023

Response from the tea industry is largely disappointment at the lack of attention to the sector. Darjeeling planters have expressed surprise at the lack of interventions to curb imports and to protect the Darjeeling tea status. UPASI, the body representing planters in south India, took to Twitter to share their views. In its pre-budget proposal, UPASI sought to increase the allocation of funds for the Commodity Boards to implement developmental schemes, they said the Tea Board saw a marginal increase in Budget Estimate for 2023-24 to INR 3.08 crore ($367,286).  

One of the proposed projects is the Aatmanirbhar Clean Plant Program to boost the availability of disease-free, quality planting material for high-value horticultural crops. This could promote intercropping with these high-value crops in the plantation sector. 

An agriculture accelerator fund was also announced to encourage agri-startups in rural areas. And lastly, the state governments have been asked to promote indigenous and GI-tagged products via a Unity Mall, which could help promote teas. Tourism promotion is another sector the budget brought up, which could impact the tea sector. 

India Price Watch

Sale 4 saw 12,185 tons on offer, with 80% of the tea in auctions sold, which is an improvement over last week. The overall average price was Rs 146/ kilo. The top-selling grades are BP, followed by BOPSM and BOP. 

Kolkata saw strong demand for orthodox and also for Darjeeling and Dust Grades. The Middle East and CIS were active for orthodox. As a result, 88% of orthodox on offer was sold, averaging Rs 173/kilo. 

Guwahati saw better demand for CTC Dust. However, prices were similar to the previous week. 

• Tea Price charts, courtesy TSigma Consultancy

In the south, Cochin saw high demand for Dust grades, pushing CTC sales to 99% and average prices for CTC at Rs 150/ kilo.

Coonoor, too saw good demand for CTC, with BOP grades being most sought after. Homedale’s PD grades fetched Rs 412/kilo at Coonoor auctions setting this year’s high price record. There was no demand from exporters or blenders. 

Weather & Climate Change

North India has seen some rain because of an intense western disturbance over Afghanistan. Winter thunderstorms are predicted in the east, in the tea regions, which fall under sub-Himalayan West Bengal, and Arunachal Pradesh, Sikkim. Dense fog is predicted in Assam and its border states. The south is also experiencing some rain, with thunderstorms forecast, including in the tea belt of Nilgiris, Idukki, and Wayanad.

Sale 3

January 21, 2023

Tea Price Report

India’s tea industry submitted several funding proposals and will closely examine the Union Budget, presented on Feb 1, 2023, to see if the central government will offer its support and bring relief to Darjeeling.

Takeaways

• Plucking dates for north India have been announced for February-March.
• Tea Board forms a 9-member committee with representation from small tea growers, indicating a greater focus on this segment.
• Ahead of the Union Budget, UPASI seeks a higher allocation of funds from the government.

Listen to India Price Watch

This week, the tea board announced plucking dates for north India. Plucking in the Dooars, Terai, and Bihar can commence on February 18th, in Darjeeling and Sikkim on February 27th, and in Himachal Pradesh and Uttarakhand on March 6th. The dates for Assam have not yet been announced. 

A recent development from the tea board is a 9-member committee formed to address the issues small tea growers face in India. The committee will serve as an informal platform to represent the issues and concerns of the small tea grower segment. Various small tea grower associations across the country will represent it. 

The industry will look closely to see if the Union Budget, presented on Feb 1, 2023, will bring relief or support. UPASI – the body of plantation companies of south India has sought a higher allocation of funds to the sector to implement the various development schemes. The funds allocated to the board in 2022-23 were Rs 131.92 crore, less than half of 2021-22. The association has also asked for the implementation of an inter-ministerial committee recommendation that social costs must be shared equally between the plantations and the Central and State governments. 

India Price Watch

An uneventful week at auctions. In Kolkata, under 4,000 tonnes of CTC was on offer. About 66% was sold, mostly the BP grade. About 1285 tons of orthodox was sold. Hindustan Unilever was active for Dust grades, while the Middle East continues to be active for orthodox tea. In Guwahati, about 3,515 tonnes of CTC was on offer, with 73% sold. In the south, Dust grades sold the highest. CTC and Orthodox prices averaged Rs 115 per kilo in Coonoor. 

Tea Price charts, courtesy TSigma Consultancy

Weather & Climate Change

The Nilgiris is expected to see some rain this week following a low-pressure area over the Bay of Bengal. Assam and Darjeeling expect to see dry weather.

Every week, I track developments in the Indian tea sector to bring you an overview of relevant news and policies impacting the sector, crop, and weather reports, along with an auction watch for prices. At regular intervals, I interview industry professionals to understand market movements, harvest, production quality, and the impact of policies on the sector.