Tea production may fall 13% this fiscal due to labour shortages: Report

The report also said that as tea is a fixed cost-intensive industry, a decline in the crop will substantially increase the cost of production for the NI bulk tea industry

Tea production in the country is likely to decline 13 per cent in the current calendar year due to restrictions on labour deployment amid the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic and adverse weather conditions, which will result in an increase in production cost, according to a report.

Factors like restrictions on labour deployment due to the coronavirus pandemic have impacted the bulk tea players in northern India in an unfavourable manner during March, April and May 2020, according to the report by rating agency ICRA.

While there were expectations of production returning to normal levels from June, inclement weather conditions and flooding