The small-scale tea sector in the district is in trouble, with major factories refusing to buy its tea leaves. The farmers are now unable to sell the leaves even at ₹2 a kilogram, said Small-Scale Tea Producing Farmers’ Federation president Y.C. Stephen.
Around 12,700 farmers depend on tea farming in the district. Small-scale tea farmers are those cultivating the crop on 50 cents to five acres of land.
This type of farming is largely prevalent in Upputhara, Peermade, Wagamon, Kochukarutharauvi, Vazhavara, Arakkulam, Anachal, Kamakshy, and Thopramkudy. The 44 major tea factories in the district used to purchase leaves from small-scale farmers through agents.
“Now the agents have stopped procuring tea leaves, saying that the factories are not purchasing them,” said Alex, a farmer at Valakode near Upputhara. Four-and a-half kilogram of leaves yield one kilogram of tea dust and the minimum price of a kilogram of tea dust is ₹120. Though the figures are hugely in favour of factories, they are reluctant to procure tea leaves for as low as ₹2.
The factories continue to produce tea dust of leaves from their own plantations. In February-March, when plantation produce plummeted, the factories had procured leaves from farmers at ₹21 a kilogram.
Abandoning crop
If the leaves are left unplucked, the farmers have to shell out money for pruning too. Once pruned, it will take three months for new leaves to set it. The normal growth period of the ‘two leaves and bud,’ which are plucked, is 15 days. Unlike other farm produce, the leaves cannot wait for a day after harvest and timely transportation to factories is essential. The farmers are now forced to abandon their harvest on roadsides.
Mr. Stephen said this was the main income for many families. It is not the low prices, but the poor demand that worries farmers.
Every year, the factories turn down leaves of small-scale farmers when the plantations yield a bumper production. This robs those totally dependent on tea farming out of an income, he added.
