NAIROBI: The government should draft and implement an export policy for tea to increase exports and improve the unit value realisation, according to V. Suresh Menon, chairman of Planters’ Association of Tamil Nadu (PAT).
Speaking at the annual meeting of the association here recently he said that more than 3.5 lakh hectares is under tea in the country and one-fifth of it is in the southern States (Karnataka, Kerala and Tamil Nadu). Nearly two lakh hectares is under coffee and it is also mostly confined to these three States. About 2.5 lakh hectare is under rubber.
In India, the domestic market for tea is huge. Tea producing countries such as Sri Lanka, Kenya and Indonesia have increased production and they export most of the production. With competitiveness in the international market, there is an impact on prices.
“This trend prevailing in the world market particularly in the context of increasing cost of production is squeezing the margins of Indian producers and is threatening the viability of the industry,” he said.
With increase in cost of inputs since last year, the tea sector is facing higher cost of production. As an export-oriented industry, it has no means of fixing the price of its products. The Central and State Governments should share the social cost with the industry.
The industry also fears that with “unreasonable and uneconomic wage demands”, its ability to survive is under question. Dharmaraj, president of United Planters’ Associations of South India, said the rubber sector in the country is affected by excess imports and the tea sector in the south needs to look at increasing exports. It should explore opportunities in the emerging markets.
S.V. Balasubramaniam, chairman of Bannari Amman Group of Companies, said the agro industry, such as tea and sugar, are facing problems related to over production, carry over stock, etc. For the sugar industry, several measures have been taken and prices are beginning to look up.
There are opportunities behind the challenges.Suresh Menon, general manager of The Bombay Burmah Trading Corporation, has been re-elected chairman of the PAT for 2015-2016 and Suresh Jacob, senior vice-president (plantations) of Neelamalai Agro Industries, has been re-elected its vice-chairman for the year.
