Bangladesh exported tea double its target for the month of July this fiscal year amid a bumper production of the item.
“Tea exports increased by 100 percent in July, the first month of the current FY, reaching a milestone of $.68 million against the target of $.34 million,” an official at Export Processing Bureau (EPB) said.
The government had fixed full-year exports of tea at 3.1 million US dollars in 2019-20 FY. According to EPB information, the total income from exports of tea was $2.82 million in 2018-19 FY.
Bangladesh’s tea has found good market in different countries of the world, including the United States, Pakistan and Middle East countries.
Tea ranks 8th among 16 products that have maintained positive export trend amid the coronavirus pandemic.
The local demand for tea is increasing as people prefer tea as a healthier beverage than others.
In the wake of Covid-19, awareness was built-up among the people about the health benefits of taking tea.
The government is mulling to increase tea production and research on new varieties and increase production as well as increase the number of tea gardens. And it will continue to support the development of the country’s tea industry.
In this regard, the government has adopted a ‘development roadmap’ for the growth of the tea industry and is implementing it.
AHM Ahsan, Vice Chairman and CEO of the EPB, said, “A huge demand of Bangladeshi tea has been created in different countries of the world amid the coronavirus outbreak. As a result, the export of the product has increased despite the pandemic.”
He also said that tea production and local demand in the country has been increasing simultaneously. Moreover there is a huge demand for Bangladeshi tea in different countries of the world, he added.
Meanwhile, Country's tea production also scored a record in last year. Breaking the record of its 165 years, about 9.5 crorekgs of tea has been produced in the country in 2019. The production target was 8 crore kgs in 2019. But the production was one and a half crore kgs more than the target.
Kul Pradeep Chakma, Secretary of the Bangladesh Tea Board, said that after the establishment of the first tea garden in the country in 1854 at Malnichhara in Sylhet, the highest production of tea was 8 crore kgs in 2016. The production has increased more than one crore kgs during the corona pandemic.
He also said that the government has adopted a 'development roadmap' for the development of the tea industry and it is being implemented. The country has set a target of producing 14 crorekgs of tea in 2025.
According to a report by the London-based International Tea Committee, Bangladesh's position in the world in tea production has notched up one step last year and it has obtained now the 9th place while China’s position is the first and India is the second.
In terms of production, Kenya, Sri Lanka, Turkey, Vietnam, Indonesia and Argentina are still above Bangladesh while countries like Iran, Myanmar and Japan are behind Bangladesh.
