AgricultureTea auctions this week
A total of 6.8m/Kgs came under the hammer this week. There was good general demand at irregular rates.
Ex-Estate offerings were similar to last and totalled a 1.2m/Kgs. Overall quality of teas from the Western Planting districts showed a general decline, whilst, the others showed no significant change. There was less demand in general and in particular for the better teas following the decline in quality.
Govt. to link big firms with ‘Divi Neguma’ to boost fruit and vegetable exports
The Government is exploring the prospects to link big firms with participants of the ‘Divi Neguma’ home-based entities to boost fruits and vegetables exports.
India frees sugar exports, global prices fall
Reuters: India has lifted for now volume limits on sugar exports, a government source said on Wednesday, adding pressure to global prices, but the world’s second-biggest producer could reinstate restrictions at a later date.
Record price for Kenilworth teas
Kenilworth Estate, situated in Ginigathhena, has established an all time record price at the weekly tea auction held on 13 March by securing an attractive price of Rs. 710 for a liquoring BOP grade. This price has surpassed the previous existing record of Rs. 570, which was established in 2008.
Soya cultivation to be enhanced
A special project to cultivate soya bean as an economic crop has been launched in the North Central Province. Under this project 25,000 acres will be cultivated with soya.
Rupee fall a mixed bag for tea industry
The fall of the rupee is likely to bring mixed results for the tea industry, John Keells Plc said last week.
It said Sri Lanka’s Rupee fell to a record Rs. 132.20 against the dollar breaking the previous record of Rs. 131.60 on 19 March 2012.
Burundi Q1 tea revenues up 20% after good harvest
Reuters: Burundi’s tea export revenues rose 20 percent in the first quarter of the year compared to the same period in 2011, boosted by high volumes of sales, a tea board official said on Thursday.
Tea is the second largest foreign exchange earner after coffee in he tiny central African country which exports 80 percent of the commodity through a regional weekly auction held in the Kenyan port city of Mombasa.
China to invest $95 b in farms by 2015
BEIJING (Reuters): China will invest around 600 billion yuan ($95.1 billion) to improve the efficiency of its farms and boost grain output by 25 million tones by 2015, Xinhua said last week.
The extra spending will help China create around 26.7 million hectares of “efficient farmland” by 2015, Xinhua said, citing Dong Zuoji, a planning director at the Ministry of Land and Resources.
Kenya sees tea output recovery after dismal Q1
NAIROBI (Reuters): Heavy rains are expected to cause a turnaround in tea production in Kenya, the world’s leading exporter of black tea, after drought and frost led to a 15 percent drop in first quarter output, the country’s tea board said on Friday.
Pushing paddy production
A discussion on increasing paddy production by another 10% while cutting down on related production costs as proposed in the Budget 2012 was held this week presided over by Secretary to the Treasury Dr. P.B. Jayasundera.
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