September tea production crashes to fifteen year low

Saturday, 22 October 2016 00:00 - - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}

Largest crop loss year on year from low country that declined from 17.3 to 12.9 million kilogrammes

The Sri Lanka Tea Board has confirmed September 2016 tea production at 19.8 million kilogrammes, down a sharp 27% on the previous year’s figure of 27.2 million kilogrammes, is the lowest since 2001 when crop yields slipped to 17.2 million kilogrammes, observed the latest tea report from Asia Siyaka Commodities.

In 2014, the September figure was a record 29 million kilogrammes and in 2013 at 25 million kilogrammes and 27 million kilogrammes the year before. High Grown production of 3.9 million kilogrammes in September 2016 is the lowest since the El-Nino year of 1992 when a quantity of 3.5 million kilogrammes was recorded, the report added.

The Mid Grown September figure of 2.9 million kilogrammes is 27% is lower than the 2015 quantity of 4 million kilogrammes. The current year’s quantity is also the lowest since 1992, when a figure of 2.6 million kilogrammes was recorded.

The largest crop loss YoY 2016 in September has come from the Low Country which declined 17.3 million kilogrammes to 12.9 million kilogrammes this year; a loss of 4.4 million kilogrammes (-25%). Production for the nine month period ending September 2016 at 218.6 million kilogrammes is down a sharp 13.6% on the previous year’s figure of 252.9 million kilogrammes.

The cumulative loss has now risen to 34.3 million kilogrammes 56% of the quantity loss has come from the Low Grown’s which have declined from 155 million kilogrammes, during January – September 2015 to 136.1 (-12.4%) this year.

High Growns are down 16% YoY 2015 from 57.9 million kilogrammes to 48.9 million kilogrammes. Mediums 33.6 million kilogrammes have lost 6 million kilogrammes on last year.

October last year was a relatively low 26.8 million kilogrammes and November declined further to 25.3 million kilogrammes.

Sri Lanka is unlikely to achieve the 2015 October figure with production likely to be blow 20 million kilogrammes.