COONOOR TEA AUCTIONS – 5:

 

26% COONOOR TEA REMAINS UNSOLD

 

 

By P S SUNDAR

 

 

The average price at Sale No: 27 of the auctions of Coonoor Tea Trade Association remained almost flat at ₹ 77.56 a kg but the sold volume dropped to 17.72 lakh kg from 19.17 lakh kg in the previous auctions resulting in the overall earnings to decline to ₹ 13.74 crore from ₹ 14.88 crore, marking a fall of ₹ 1.14 crore or 7.66 per cent in just one week.

This left teas worth ₹ 4.74 crore unsold as there were no takers for about 26 per cent of the offer.

This week also, no tea could enter the ₹ 300/kg bracket.

Homedale Estate’s Red Dust grade, auctioned by Global Tea Auctioneers Private Ltd., (GTAPL) topped the auctions when Benniel and Co., bought it for ₹ 290 a kg.

Homedale Estate’s Broken Orange Pekoe (BOP) grade, auctioned by GTAPL, topped the CTC leaf auctions fetching ₹ 256.   Crosshill Estate Special BOP, auctioned by GTAPL, got ₹ 255. 

Among other CTC teas, Shanthi Supreme got ₹ 226, Kannavarai Estate ₹ 225, Vigneshwar Estate ₹ 223, Deepika Supreme ₹ 221, Pinewood Estate ₹ 213, Riverside Estate ₹ 211, Hiribel Estate ₹ 203 and Bellatti Estate ₹ 202.

Among orthodox teas, Havukal got ₹ 282, Kairbetta ₹ 270, Chamraj ₹ 267, Nonsuch Orthodox ₹ 208 and Kodanad ₹ 205.   

(Response can also be sent to: pssundar.coonoor@gmail.com) 

 

 

 

 PRODUCTION -- 31:

INDIA PUSHES UP GLOBAL BLACK TEA OUTPUT DESPITE LOSS IN SL, KENYA

 

By P S SUNDAR

 

India has helped to overcome the loss in global black tea production in other major countries like Sri Lanka and Kenya and register an increase over the same period of last year.

 

Compiler of Global Tea Digest Rajesh Gupta told me, “Our compilation of the official data received from various countries shows that the global black tea production so far this year has increased to 600.89 million kg (mkg) from 586.61 mkg in 2021.  This increase of 14.28 mkg posts a gain of 2.43 per cent”.

 

Achieving a higher production has been a serious task because of lower output in many countries.

 

“In particular, Sri Lanka, which is reeling under economic crisis, produced 111.95 mkg against 133.81 mkg in 2021, marking a major decline of 21.86 mkg or 16.34 per cent”, Rajesh Gupta said.

 

“In Kenya, due to adverse weather, production dropped to 135.82 mkg from 140.97 mkg, posting a loss of 5.15 mkg or 3.65 per cent”, he said.

 

Malawi also posted a decline – from 28.82 mkg to 26 mkg, a fall of 2.82 mkg or 9.78 per cent, he noted.

 

However, all these losses were offset by the significant increase in India’s tea production.

 

“Our compilations of the latest data from Tea Board shows that production has risen to 320.06 mkg from 277.09 mkg.   This increase of 42.97 mkg marked a gain of 15.51 per cent.   This meant that increase in India’s production was more than the loss in Kenya, Sri Lanka and Malawi”, Rajesh Gupta explained.

 

India’s production would have been still higher had it not been for a fall in Tamil Nadu due to adverse weather.    “In Tamil Nadu, the output dropped to 63.40 mkg from 68.58 mkg – a fall of 5.18 mkg or 7.55 per cent”, Rajesh Gupta disclosed.  

 

“This pulled down the South India’s overall production to 94.67 mkg from 97.47 mkg, marking a decline of 2.80 mkg or 2.87 per cent”, he said.

 

“North India, on the other hand, produced 45.77 mkg or 25.48 per cent more to reach 225.39 mkg from 179.62 mkg”, he observed.  All regions here produced more except Dooars where the output dropped marginally.

 

Assam continued to top the country’s production table.  With an output of 127.76 mkg, Assam produced 38.85 mkg or 43.70 per cent more than last year’s 88.91 mkg, Rajesh Gupta revealed.

 

West Bengal’s production rose to 91.70 mkg from 85.11 mkg – an increase of 6.59 mkg or 7.74 per cent. 

 

(Response can also be sent to: pssundar.coonor@gmail.com) 

 

 

 

 

 FOR THE RECORD -- 93:

CUTTING TEA CONSUMPTION IN PAKISTAN ..

MAXIMUM RESIDUE LEVEL..

INDIA'S TEA OUTPUT RISING..

GLOBAL BLACK TEA PRODUCTION FALLING..

TEA BOARD FIXING GREEN LEAF PRICE..

(Articles in The Assam Review & Tea News, June 2022)

By P S SUNDAR.

(Response can also be sent to: pssundar.coonoor@gmail.com)

 

COONOOR TEA AUCTIONS – 4:

 

NO TEA CROSSES ₹ 300/KG MARK

 

 

By P S SUNDAR

 

As producers left the market to the forces of demand and supply in Sale No: 26 of the auctions of Coonoor Tea Trade Association as against the fixing of the base price of ₹ 85 a kg in the previous Sale, 79.74 per cent of the 24.49 lakh kg on offer was sold as against 30.23 per cent in the previous week.

 

The average price dropped sharply to ₹ 77.60 a kg from ₹ 92.92 in the previous Sale.   In effect, teas worth ₹ 14.88 crore was sold marking an increase of ₹ 7.84 crore over the previous week.   This also mean a whopping increase of 111.36 per cent in just one week!

 

However, this left teas worth ₹ 3.78 crore unsold because there were no takers for as much as about 20 per cent of the offer.

 

No tea could enter the ₹ 300/kg bracket this week.  Kodanad orthodox tea topped the auctions at ₹ 273 a kg.  Among other orthodox teas, Havukal got ₹ 262, Kairbetta ₹ 241 and Glendale ₹ 240.

 

Among CTC teas, Crosshill Estate tea, auctioned by Global tea Auctioneers Pvt Ltd., topped when Nishanthi Traders bought it for ₹ 241 a kg.    Darmona Estate, Bathma Excel and Kannavarai Estate got ₹ 205 each and Shanthi Supreme ₹ 202. 

(Response can also be sent to: pssundar.coonoor@gmail.com) 

GREEN LEAF PRICE -- 1 

TEA BOARD FIXES GREEN LEAF PRICE AT OVER 2-YEAR LOW

 

 by P S SUNDAR 

 

Dr M Muthukumar IAS, Executive Director of Tea Board in the Union Commerce ministry has announced that the factories which purchased their raw material (popularly called bought leaf factories) green leaf from the small growers in The Nilgiris district in June must pay ₹ 12.68 per kg.

 

He has instructed field officials of the Board to ensure that no factory in their jurisdiction paid less than this price to the growers. 

 

However, this is the lowest price of more than two years.   The previous low was ₹ 12.19 per kg fixed way back in April 2020.

 

This is ₹ 1.17 less per kg compared to the price fixed for May.  That means, the average price has fallen by 8.45 per cent in one month.

 

This is as much as ₹ 7.24 less per kg compared to ₹ 19.92 fixed in June 2021.   That means, the price has crashed by as much as 36.35 per cent compared to this time last year.

 

Factory owners, however, contend that just as the Board fixes the price they have to pay to the growers, the Board must fix a minimum price for their tea at the public auction.

 

The President of The Nilgiris Bought Leaf Tea Manufacturers’ Association Dhananjayan said that unless the tea fetches a minimum of ₹ 85 per kg at the auction, factories will not be able to cover their production cost asper the price sharing formula fixed by the Tea Board.

 

The small growers are a worried lot.  Some of them hoisted black flags in their villages and destroyed their green leaf instead of supplying to the factories to protest the unremunerative price they get.

 

Dr Muthukumar said, “The price has been fixed based on the consolidated auction sale average price of the relevant teas of bought leaf factories”. 

 

He as assured to solve the problem of low prices after discussing with the stakeholders.

(Response can also be sent to: pssundar.coonoor@gmail.com)