Sri Lanka’s tea production continued to nosedive in February on top of a large drop in January production. The Sri Lanka Tea Board reported a total tea output of 12.5 million kgs in February compared to 17.6 million kgs in January this year.
The January output itself had dropped by 31% compared to January 2008 and the February output is 49% lower than February last year. The total output for both months is 59% lower than the production for the first two months of 2008.
This major drop in output is largely due to poor performance of low grown teas. The production of low growns dropped from 31.4 million kgs in the first two months in 2008 to 16.2 million kgs this year. Production of high and mid growns also reduced sharply this year.
This fall in production is attributed mainly to the prolonged dry weather in the country since the start of the year.
Other factors that may have contributed are inadequate fertiliser application and pruning of some small holdings. Tea is expected to perform better in March and continue to improve in April, provided the weather cooperates. |
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