The tea production in India has increased by 97.52 Mkgs during January- September period as compared to 2020 and the projected production in calendar 2021 is expected to be around 1360 million kg as compared to 1257 million kg in 2020. This was divulged by Mr Raj Bansal, president, Tea Association of India (TAI) at the 48th biennial annual general meeting held on Friday.
Bansal said that the total global black tea output has increased by 94.45 Mkgs during January -September period as compared to 2020. He said that the projected export of teas from India for 2021 is 200 million kg as compared to 209 Mkgs in 2020 and 252 million kg in 2019.
The TAI president said that the Tea Board had convened a meeting on export scenarios on August 6 projecting a national effort to achieve tea export of 300 million kg for FY22. "However, in the present scenario to achieve an export target even of 250 million kg appears to be bleak," he said.
Bansal outlined the gains that the tea industry has garnered in the post-Covid period. Post Covid gains for Tea industry: "Tea emerged as a plant based functional food geared by the wellness aspect, discovery of premium tea and consumers’ quest for understanding of many layers of taste and variants available to them, eco friendly packaging. and rise of online marketing over offline and innovative manner of marketing tea," he said.
Bansal said that the Government of India has sanctioned Rs 968 crore for the tea industry for the period 2021-22 to 2025-26. While the government expects the tea Industry to be self sufficient, keeping in mind that this industry employs about 11 lakh people directly and supports approximately 40 lakh people on its plantations and factories mostly in rural areas where other sources of employment are currently limited and an industry where more than 50% workforce are women the association urges upon the government to continue lend its helping hand to the social cause by way of Incentives, he added.
Source:economictimes.com