Lowest tea production recorded in 23 years

Lowest tea production recorded in 23 years

Sri Lanka's tea production in 2020 was 278 million kilograms, the lowest in 23 years.

According to brokerage firms, the previous lowest tea production was 276 million kilograms in 1997.

Although the annual production of tea in Sri Lanka increased to 340 million kilograms in 2013, tea production was steadily declining since then until last year.

The decline in tea production was attributed to the hot dry weather from January to April last year.

According to agronomists, climate change was a major factor in reducing tea production in the country.

Last year, Turkey bought the largest quantity of Sri Lankan tea, 38.8 million kilograms, followed by Iraq with 33.3 kilograms and Russia with 29.6 million kilograms.