Tea producers in Jhapa announce indefinite shutdown

KATHMANDU: Tea producers in Nepal have announced an indefinite shutdown of tea factories and plantations beginning Thursday, citing a deepening crisis in the country’s tea industry.

Tea entrepreneurs in Jhapa made the decision after Nepali tea exports to India were disrupted by a new Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) introduced by the Tea Board of India.

According to Shukra Dahal, general secretary of the Nepal Tea Producers Association, Nepal’s CTC and orthodox tea trade is worth around Rs 12 billion to Rs 14 billion. “About Rs 5 billion of that amount comes from exports to India,” he added.

The Jhapa chapter of the Nepal Tea Producers Association announced the shutdown during a press conference in Bhadrapur on Wednesday. The chapter said both tea factories and tea gardens would remain closed from Thursday until further notice.

Jhapa is the largest tea producer in the country, accounting for more than three-fourths of total exports.

The producers have urged the government to facilitate exports to alternative markets, including Bangladesh and Pakistan, as potential destinations for Nepali tea.

The tea sector provides employment to around 60,000 workers and staff and contributes roughly Rs 1 billion in annual revenue to the state.