Is the future bright for tea the cup that cheers?
The tea industry plays a crucial role in the economy with its contribution to employment, export earnings and overall national product.
Sri Lanka is no longer the number one tea exporter. The industry faces many difficulties such as rising cost of production, declining productivity, management challenges and labour shortage are only a few to be mentioned. In this light, it is doubtful whether the tea industry could achieve the export targets of the government. Tea remains a main crop which brings income and glory to Sri Lanka and Sri Lanka is world renowned for its high quality teas. Some prominent persons directly involved in the industry have said that the industry has a very good future with the price in the world market reaching the highest in the past four decades, productivity improving in spite of the many challenges faced in the recent years. It is true. We agreed but there are many unresolved key issues such as high cost of production, declining tea yields, slow progress in replanting and infilling along with some of the issues mentioned above.
Some key issues were highlighted at the 22nd Annual General Meeting of the Sri Lanka Tea Factory Owners Association held recently. The tea smallholder sector contributes over 70 per cent of the national production. Minister of Plantation Industries Mahinda Samarasingha who delivered the keynote address at this meeting too has admitted that there are lot of challenges faced by the tea industry. The potential for the industry locally and internationally is very encouraging. The Government is also looking at every possible aspect of ensuring the long term sustainability of the industry but the question is when would corrective measures be taken to overcome these issues rather than discussing it over and over at every forum.
Responsible authorities must come out with some sort of a acceptable solutions to retain the younger generation on the estates if not there would be an acute labour shortage. Shortage of labour is not only a phenomenon in Sri Lanka but in many tea growing areas in the African continent as well. This has become a perennial problem for which we have not been able to provide a permanent solution.
British planters taking advantage of favorable agro –climatic conditions introduced tea to quench their thirst and unfortunately we have miserably failed in making a sustainable and viable solution to the problems to protect and promote our industry as a tea producer and tea exporter.
The time has come to stop all unnecessary discussions and the authorities concerned need to focus on a long –term strategy that guarantees stability to the country tea industry.
It is hoped that the Government, the relevant institutions, politicians, trade unionists and the authorities of the Regional Plantation companies will take corrective measures to consolidate and develop the industry not forgetting the ethical aspects such as housing, education, health and other welfare facilities and the dignity of the labour force.
(The writer is a planter)