Tea production in Sri Lanka

Sri Lanka (formerly known as Ceylon) has a climate and varied elevations that enable the cultivation of both Camellia sinensis var. assamica and Camellia sinensis var. sinensis, with the assamica varietal accounting for the majority of production. Tea production is one of the main sources of foreign exchange for Sri Lanka, and accounts for 2% of GDP, contributing over US$1.3 billion in 2021 to the economy of Sri Lanka.[1] It employs, directly or indirectly, over 1 million people, and in 1995 directly employed 215,338 on tea plantations and estates. In addition, tea planting by smallholders employs thousands and is the primary livelihood for tens of thousands of families. Sri Lanka is the world's fourth-largest producer of tea. In 1995, it was the world's leading exporter of tea (rather than a producer), accounting for 23% of global exports. Sri Lanka ranked second in tea export earnings in 2020[2] after China. The highest production of 340 million kg was recorded in 2013, while the production in 2014 was slightly reduced to 338 million kg.[3] India has additionally guaranteed Sri Lanka a shipment of 65,000 metric tons of urea. Sri Lanka's troubled execution of an organic agriculture initiative had pushed the country perilously close to an agricultural crisis. Given the surge in global fertilizer prices, it is improbable that Sri Lanka could procure fertilizer at prevailing market rates.[4]

The humidity, cool temperatures, and rainfall in the country's central highlands create a climate conducive to the production of high-quality tea. On the other hand, tea produced in low-elevation areas such as the Matara, Galle, and Ratnapura districts, with high rainfall and warm temperatures, exhibits high astringency. Tea biomass production is higher in low-elevation areas. Such tea is popular in the Middle East. Sri Lanka produces primarily orthodox black teas, as well as CTC, white, and green teas. The two types of green tea produced are gunpowder and sencha.[6] Tea planting was introduced to the country in 1867 by James Taylor, a British planter who arrived in 1852.[7][8][9][10][11][12][13] The industry grew rapidly following the devastation of the coffee plantations in Ceylon in 1869 by a fungal disease called Hemileia vastatrix, also known as coffee leaf rust.[14][15] Tea planting under smallholder conditions became popular in the 1970s. Most of Sri Lanka's export market is in the Middle East and Europe, but there are also plenty of bidders worldwide for its specialty high-country-grown Nuwara Eliya teas.[6]

History

The total population of Sri Lanka, according to the 1871 census, was 2,584,780. The 1871 demographic distribution and population in the plantation areas are given below:[16]

1871 demographic distribution
District Total population No. of estates Estate population % of population on estates
Kandy District 258,432 625 81,476 31.53
Badulla District 129,000 130 15,555 12.06
Matale District 71,724 111 13,052 18.2
Kegalle District 105,287 40 3,790 3.6
Sabaragamuwa 92,277 37 3,227 3.5
Nuwara Eliya District 36,184 21 308 0.85
Kurunegala District 207,885 21 2,393 1.15
Matara District 143,379 11 1,072 0.75

Growth and history of commercial production

Registered tea production by elevation

Registered tea production in hectares and total square miles by elevation category in Sri Lanka, 1959–2000:[16]

Year High altitude hectares Medium altitude hectares Low altitude hectares Total hectares Total square miles
1959 74,581 66,711 46,101 187,393 723.5
1960 79,586 69,482 48,113 197,181 761.3
1965 87,345 92,806 60,365 240,516 928.6
1970 77,549 98,624 65,625 241,798 933.6
1975 79,337 98,446 64,099 241,882 933.9
1980 78,786 96,950 68,969 244,705 944.8
1985 74,706 89,175 67,769 231,650 894.4
1990 73,138 83,223 65,397 221,758 856.2
1995 51,443 56,155 79,711 187,309 723.2
2000 52,272 56,863 79,836 188,971 729.6

Main destination of Sri Lankan teas

The most important foreign markets for Sri Lankan tea are the former Soviet bloc countries of the CIS, the United Arab Emirates, Russia, Syria, Turkey, Iran, Saudi Arabia, Iraq, UK, Egypt, Libya and Japan.[22]

The most important foreign markets for Sri Lankan tea are as follows, in terms of millions of kilograms and millions of pounds imported. The figures were recorded in 2000:[16]

Total Exports
Country Million kilograms Million pounds Total Percent
CIS Countries 57.6 127.0 20
UAE 48.1 106.0 16.7
Russia 46.1 101.6 16.01
Syria 21.5 47.4 7.47
Turkey 20.3 44.8 7.05
Iran 12.5 27.6 4.34
Saudi Arabia 11.4 25.1 3.96
Iraq 11.1 24.5 3.85
UK 10.2 22.5 3.54
Egypt 10.1 22.3 3.51
Libya 10.0 22.0 3.47
Japan 8.3 18.3 2.88
Germany 5.0 11.0 1.74
Others 23.7 52.2 8.23
Total 288 634.9 100

Revenue Statistics

Year Total Export Revenue of Tea (in million. US$) [23][24][25]
2019 $1,346
2020 $1,241
2021 $1,324
2022 $1,258
2023 $1,310
2024 $1,435
2025 $1,510[26]

Branding

Main article: Ceylon tea

The Sri Lanka Tea Board is the legal proprietor of the lion logo of Ceylon tea. The logo has been registered as a trademark in many countries. To appear the Lion logo on a tea pack, it must meet four criteria.

  1. The Lion Logo can only be used on consumer packs of Ceylon tea.
  2. The packs must contain 100 percent pure Ceylon tea.
  3. The packaging should be done only in Sri Lanka.
  4. The brands which employ the Lion logo should meet the quality standards set by the Sri Lanka Tea Board.[27]

The logo is widely regarded as a "known sign of high quality" worldwide.[28] The Sri Lanka Tea board signed an agreement to sponsor Sri Lanka national cricket team and Sri Lanka women's national cricket team in their overseas tours for US$4 million for three years.[29]

Research

The Tea Research Institute

The Tea Research Ordinance was enacted by Parliament in 1925, and the Tea Research Institute (TRI) was founded. It is at present the only national body in the country that generates and disseminates new research and technology related to the processing and cultivation of tea.[30]

Beginning in the early 1970s, two researchers from the National Institute of Dental Research in Bethesda, Maryland, USA conducted a series of research projects in which they arranged a longitudinal study group of a large number of Tamil tea labourers who worked at the Dunsinane and Harrow Tea Estates, 80 kilometres (50 mi) from Kandy. This landmark study was possible because the population of tea labourers was known to have never employed conventional oral hygiene measures, thereby providing insight into the natural history of periodontal disease in humans.[31]

Sustainability standards and certifications

Several organisations, both international and local, promote and enforce sustainability standards and certifications for tea in Sri Lanka.

Among the international organisations operating in Sri Lanka are Rainforest Alliance, Fairtrade, UTZ Certified, and Ethical Tea Partnership. The Small Organic Farmers' Association (SOFA) is a local organisation dedicated to organic farming.

  • Tea plantations in Wewalthalawa
  • Tea plantations near Haputale, Uva
  • Tea plantations in Nuwara Eliya
  • Picking tea leaves
  • Tea leaves
  • Tea harvester in Sri Lanka
  • Tea grown in home-gardens by individual households - Ratnapura Dist

See also

References

  1. ^ Nadeera, Dilshan (9 January 2022). "Lankan tea exports earned $ 1.3 Bn in 2021". Archived from the original on 6 March 2023. Retrieved 1 February 2022.
  2. ^ "Leading tea exporting countries worldwide in 2020". Archived from the original on 31 January 2023. Retrieved 22 September 2021.
  3. ^ Central Bank of Sri Lanka, 2014, Annual Report, http://www.cbsl.gov.lk/pics_n_docs/10_pub/_docs/efr/annual_report/AR2014/English/content.htm Archived 2015-08-03 at the Wayback Machine
  4. ^ "Indian Assistance to Sri Lanka: Lifeline or Chokehold?". thediplomat.com. Archived from the original on 1 June 2023. Retrieved 21 September 2023.
  5. ^ "Planters Registry: James Taylor". historyofceylontea.com. Retrieved 21 July 2025.
  6. ^ a b Smith, Krisi (2016). World Atlas of Tea. Great Britain: Mitchell Beazley. p. 157. ISBN 978-1-78472-124-4.
  7. ^ "TED Case Studies – Ceylon Tea". American University, Washington, DC. Archived from the original on 23 February 2015. Retrieved 27 November 2013.
  8. ^ "Sri Lanka tops tea sales". BBC. 1 February 2002. Archived from the original on 3 May 2008. Retrieved 28 April 2008.
  9. ^ "Sri Lanka Tea Tour". The Tea Association of the USA. 11–17 August 2003. Archived from the original on 17 April 2011. Retrieved 5 April 2008.
  10. ^ "Role of Tea in Development in Sri Lanka". United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific. Archived from the original on 6 October 2008.
  11. ^ "South Asia Help for Sri Lanka's tea industry". BBC News. 4 April 1999. Archived from the original on 30 June 2009. Retrieved 5 April 2008.
  12. ^ "Sri Lanka moves to protect tea industry". BBC News. 19 February 2003. Archived from the original on 7 April 2008. Retrieved 5 April 2008.
  13. ^ "Just 64p a day for tea pickers in Sri Lanka". BBC News. 20 September 2005. Archived from the original on 30 June 2009. Retrieved 5 April 2008.
  14. ^ Illy, Andrea; Viani, Rinantonio (2005). Espresso Coffee: The Science of Quality. Academic Press. ISBN 978-0-12-370371-2.
  15. ^ Steiman, Shawn. "Hemileia vastatrix". Coffee Research.org. Retrieved 25 April 2009.
  16. ^ a b c Holsinger, Monte (2002). "Thesis on the History of Ceylon Tea". History of Ceylon Tea. Archived from the original on 19 June 2009. Retrieved 25 April 2009.
  17. ^ "Planters Registry: H.R. Trafford". historyofceylontea.com. Retrieved 19 July 2025.
  18. ^ "Planters Registry: C.H. de Soysa". historyofceylontea.com. Retrieved 18 July 2025.
  19. ^ Ceylon Tea: The Trade that Made a Nation, Richard Simon, pp. 24 & 97 (Colombo Tea Traders' Association, 2017), ISBN 9789557394008
  20. ^ Ceylonese Participation in Tea Cultivation, by Maxwell Fernando: History of Ceylon Tea Website, Retrieved 5 December 2014
  21. ^ Great Lives From History: Incredibly Wealthy Archived 19 March 2023 at the Wayback Machine, Howard Bromberg, pp. 263-5 (Salem Pr Inc), ISBN 9781587656675
  22. ^ "Sri Lanka tops tea sales". BBC. 1 February 2002. Archived from the original on 2 May 2004. Retrieved 25 April 2009.
  23. ^ "Merchandize exports reached US$ 13 Bn in 2022". Ada Derana. 31 January 2023. Archived from the original on 6 March 2023. Retrieved 31 January 2023.
  24. ^ Malinga (28 January 2025). "Increase in Lankan tea production, exports and national average". DailyNews.
  25. ^ "Merchandise exports anchor US $ 12.7bn revenue in 2024 - Breaking News | Daily Mirror".
  26. ^ https://www.ft.lk/front-page/Tea-exports-top-1-5-b-in-2025-despite-price-pressures/44-787299
  27. ^ "Tea from Sri Lanka" (PDF). Sri Lanka Export Development Board. Archived (PDF) from the original on 30 June 2021. Retrieved 27 March 2021.
  28. ^ Johnsson, S. (23 May 2016). "The green gold from Sri Lanka" (PDF). Linnaeus University. p. 43. Archived (PDF) from the original on 1 November 2021. Retrieved 27 March 2021.
  29. ^ "Ceylon Tea – The Official Overseas Sponsor of Sri Lanka Cricket". srilankateaboard.lk. Sri Lanka Tea Board. 7 January 2015. Archived from the original on 5 November 2022. Retrieved 27 March 2021.
  30. ^ Who we are Archived 2017-04-27 at the Wayback Machine, Tea Research Institute – Sri Lanka. Retrieved April 2017
  31. ^ Löe, H, et al. Natural history of periodontal disease in humans. J Clin Perio 1986;13:431–440.

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