Assam chief secretary calls for quality push in tea industry

Assam chief secretary Ravi Kota urged prioritizing and promotion of high-quality and compliant teas by the packers and said that the government is taking a firm stand by supporting the closure of tea production by November 30 this year to prevent the production of poor-quality teas by the season’s end.

Kota called for a concerted effort of the Tea Industry stakeholders to revitalize the sector while addressing the 10th Annual General Meeting of the Federation of All India Tea Traders Association (FAITTA) in Guwahati on Saturday.
While acknowledging the efforts made by the Tea industry bodies to ensure safe and quality tea, the chief secretary underscored that the focus should be on promoting quality over quantity. Expressing concern about the ongoing trend of selling tea products at low market prices, the chief secretary said the issue must be addressed immediately for the economic well-being of over lakhs of small tea growers and tea garden workers across the state.


The chief secretary also urged prioritizing and promotion of high-quality and compliant teas by the packers and said that the government is taking a firm stand by supporting the closure of tea production by November 30 this year to prevent the production of poor-quality teas by the season’s end.

The chief secretary shared that Assam government has implemented several key initiatives to ensure that tea as India’s national beverage remains safe, MRL compliant, and its sales processes transparent. These include routing 100% dust teas through a public platform for open testing and enhancing the overall integrity of the industry. However, he highlighted that the success of these efforts requires the support and collaboration of industry leaders.

The chief secretary also stressed that Assam Tea should be promoted and sold purely as Assam Tea and avoid being blended with teas from other regions. To educate and to captivate the consumers about the authentic flavour and Assam tea’s unique taste, this distinction must be mentioned on consumer packaging to highlight the quality and region of origin, he stated.

The chief secretary suggested that selling of Assam teas through the Guwahati Auction Centre should be encouraged, as the platforms plays a critical role in increased transparency and visibility of the market thereby creating jobs and stimulating economic activities within the state.

The chief secretary also urged the exporters and blenders to establish processing units in Assam to facilitate value addition within the state. This, he believes will not just enhance the value chain but also contribute to the local economy.

Highlighting the need to attract the younger generation to tea consumption, the chief secretary said that there is an urgent need for generic promotion and urged that FAITTA being in the industry's front line should take this responsibility and work towards revitalizing tea's appeal among the youth.

Sanjay Shah Chairman FAITTA addressed the Open Session of the FAITTA’s 10th AGM and said Tea Production in the calendar year 2023 closed at 1393 million kgs against 1366 million kgs in 2022.This was a recovery from the pandemic effect but production remained still short of the 2019 level. After many years of relative stagnation. Indian Tea Exports appeared to be on a higher growth trajectory.

However after successive years of 250 m kg plus levels exports sharply declined in 2020 and 2021 to 210 million kgs and 196 million kgs respectively. Exports registered some recovery in 2022 touching 231 million kgs. In 2023 however Indian tea exports continue to meet global headwinds and closed at 228 Million kgs. As regards imports after touching around 29 million kgs in 2022 it declined to 23 million kgs in 2023 and as per current data imports in 2024 are running at same levels last year.

He added that with the production recovery in 2021, prices in 2021-22 expectedly softened by around Rs 20 per kg. With some recovery in demand from the pandemic period prices in 2022-23 staged some recovery with average prices ending at Rs 180 per kg in the fiscal.