In this week’s news, the possible addition of rubber cultivation to Assam’s tea estates was announced. Earlier this year, the state government amended the Assam Fixation of Ceiling on Landholding Act of 1956, to allow up to 5% of the total land of a tea garden to be used for tourism, cultivation of agri crops, or animal husbandry.  The Rubber Board is now looking at rubber plantation in the periphery of tea estates, which would help meet the demand for natural rubber in the country. The rubber board is focussed on the northeastern belt for potential rubber cultivation. Tripura state in this region, where tea is cultivated, is already the second largest producer of rubber in the country. It is hoped that this would offset some of the losses from tea planting. 

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*New audio uploaded 11-3-2022

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The Tea Board of India reports a 16.5% increase in tea production for September as compared to 2021. West Bengal production was 52.94mln kilos (as against 46.32mln kilos in 2021), Assam at 109mln kilos (as against 92mln kilos in 2021) and south India at 23.28mln kilos (as against 20.61mln kilos in 2021).

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*New audio uploaded 11-3-2022

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In Darjeeling, news of garden sales continues as six of 10 tea gardens that were part of the Darjeeling Organic Tea Estates Pvt. Ltd. (DOTEPL) were sold. This is a first for the struggling industry to see so many gardens change ownership in a single day. DOTEPL was, until now, the second largest in Darjeeling, owning ten gardens here and one in Assam. The sale included iconic estates such as Ambootia, Aloobari, and Happy Valley. The company has been funded with investments from Europe since 2011. In June this year, the company was in the news due to non-payment of wages for two months leading to a protest by the workers. Work resumed only after the management and union agreed on wages due for two fortnights to be paid immediately. A month ago, managers and assistant managers from 8 of DOTEPL’s gardens quit without notice. Last week, the company announced the sale of 6 of its gardens to Lemongrass Organic Tea Estates Ltd., which acquired three organic gardens in this region last year. How this impacts the mood in the hills will remain to be seen. 

Meanwhile, the government issued a draft tea policy in Assam that included a financial package to set up tea boutiques within and outside the state. The government seems eager to aid the promotion of Assam Tea and has offered to assist producers in attending trade fairs and exhibitions. The draft policy also covers machinery upgrades, the establishment of blending and packaging units, and efforts to facilitate exports. 

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*New audio uploaded 10-31-2022

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This week, there was a new notification from the tea board of India allowing retailers to blend imported tea with Indian teas that are protected by the GI. This effectively reverses the prohibition issued in November 2021, in response to concerns about adulteration of Darjeeling with Nepal tea. Consequently, a large volume of tea remained unsold in the auctions. This was because Tata Consumer Products Ltd., one of the biggest buyers of Darjeeling tea in the domestic market had stopped purchasing Darjeeling Tea which goes into their Tata Gold packs. An estimated 1mn kilos of Darjeeling tea, which is about 15% of Darjeeling’s annual production, is bought by TCPL.

Under the new order, a GI tea that is blended with an imported tea cannot claim the GI label. 

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*New audio uploaded 7-21-2022

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The Tea Board of India has announced a study on domestic tea consumption patterns with the aim to increase it. The study will be carried out across the country. India is the second largest producer of tea and also a significant consumer. In 2021, domestic consumption was around 1,100 million kg of tea. However, per capita intake of the beverage is low, at 850g. Further, tea sold within the country is the commodity segment, priced low; it has not been positioned or marketed as a refreshing and healthy lifestyle choice. The industry needs its domestic market to offset losses from exports and to absorb the bulk of tea produced here.

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*New audio uploaded 7-21-2022

PHOTO CAPTION | CREDIT: Photo by Aravinda Anantharaman