Tea industry witnesses production fall, rise in exports in 2024

KOLKATA: The tea industry is likely to witness a fall in total production by over 100 million kg till the end of this year due to erratic weather conditions coupled with early annual closure of gardens, resulting in an increase in cost per kg for planters, stakeholders said on Monday.

However, the silver lining this year was better price realisation and growing exports.

As compared to around 1,178 million kg output during the first 10 months of 2023, the country produced around 1,112 million kg of tea in the January-October period of the current calendar year, while exports were expected to touch 240-250 million kg in 2024, up from around 231 million kg in the previous year, they said.