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NEPALI TEA |
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NEPALI TEA |
Hitting The Global Market Demands for Nepalese
tea is growing in global market By THAKUR AMGAI Although Nepal is a new player in the
international tea market, Nepalese tea is gradually establishing itself as a popular
brand. Grown in high mountains, Nepalese tea has its own special flavor.
But, the way ahead for Nepalese tea
is not much easy. With the entry of Nepal into WTO, Nepalese tea producers have to compete
in the global market for price and quality. Since European countries have placed tough
standards for pesticides, tea producers will need to control its use. According to recent trends and statistics,
Nepalese tea has a good quality and can compete in the global market. However, lack of
institutional development and a lack of improved technology of farming could obstruct in
the achievement of this goal. Organized by various institutions involved
in the areas of tea producing, trading and policymaking, the tea festival showcased
different flavors of tea produced in Nepal. The festival was named 'Nepal Tea and the
World.' The international tea event lured tea producer, exporters, buyers from many
countries including Germany, Japan, USA, Canada, India, Pakistan and Nepal. After the opening up of the Pakistani
market for Nepalese tea, the export to Pakistan has jumped by many folds and the demand
for Nepalese tea is growing there. Nepal has been exporting its tea to Germany and some
other European countries for quite a long time. "There is a need to promote Nepali
brand in order to address this problem," said Dev Bhakta Shakya, Director of
Agriculture Entrepreneurship Center at the Federation of Nepalese Chamber of Commerce and
Industry (FNCCI). Traditionally, tea is planted in the hills
of eastern Nepal but plantation has gradually shifted to central region as well. Hills of
Ilam, Panchthar and Taplejung and plains of Jhapa, Sunsari and Morang are famous for their
tea plantations. Last year the total production of tea was
1.6 million kgs and Nepal exported tea worth Rs. 500 million. Experts reveal that the
production of tea has been growing at 20 percent annual growth rate and so has the export.
"Nepalese tea has its own flavor and taste. There is a huge untapped market,"
said Deepak Prakash Banskota, vice president of Himalayan Orthodox Tea Producers
Association (HOTPA). Others, too, agree that Nepalese tea has
huge potential of export. Tea plantation kicked off in Nepal some 142 years ago, but
institutional efforts to make it an industrial and commercial venture started much later.
The topography as well as the climate in eastern Nepal matches that of Darjeeling of
India, which is home to many tea gardens. However, while the tea from Darjeeling has made
a brand name and gained popularity worldwide, the Nepalese tea market is limited to few
cities of few countries only. It has been reported that Indian
businessmen in the border area buy Nepalese tea and export it to the global market
labeling it as Darjeeling tea. The visit of the Pakistani Prime Minister
Shaukat Aziz also proved to be helpful for the promotion Nepalese tea. Pakistan has
decided to waive the custom duty for Nepalese tea. Nepal had exported 0.9 million kg tea
to Pakistan last year. The exemption of the custom duty is likely to increase its export
this year. However, according to Krishna Prasad
Dhakal, executive director of Nepal Tea and Coffee Development Board, Nepalese tea has not
been able to compete in the Indian market in terms of quality and price. He opines it is
because of the lack of institutional efforts in tea plantation. He said, "Tea
plantation is limited to the initiation and efforts of individual farmers at present. To
make it able to compete in the international market, institutional efforts should be made
in a sustainable manner. The festival is a good opportunity for that." Presently Nepal has been chiefly exporting
Orthodox tea in European and other developed countries. The kind of tea, produced without
using any chemical fertilizers and other chemicals has higher demand in the world market
and fetches higher price in the world market. Out of total 15,000 hectares of land where
tea is planted Orthodox tea is planted in 689 hectares of land. According to Dr. Dev Bhakta Shakya,
Orthodox tea production has gradually increased in the last couple of years and that the
festival would help to increase its export. Presently, there are 85 large estate
plantations and 7,500 farmers engaged in it. KEEP AGM Held The eighth Annual General Meeting of the
Kathmandu Environment and Education Project (KEEP) was held on Sunday, 21 November in
Kathmandu. The meeting discussed various issues on improving awareness to reduce
environmental degradation as a result of tourism, among others. On the occasion, P. T. Sherpa, the
executive director of the project informed the members and participants on issues of
tourism and environment through a slide show. The participants stressed the need for
responsible attitude and action from everybody involved in tourism for the reduction of
environmental impacts. "If environment deteriorates what are we going to show to
tourists to lure them?" questioned Karna Shakya, a renowned tourism entrepreneur and
the chief guest of the program. |
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