A total of 114,445 tons of fresh tea leaves worth 6.5 trillion rials ($23 million) have so far been purchased from local farmers in the current Iranian year (started March 21), says the head of Iran Tea Organization.
“Around 51% of the total are top-quality tea leaves and the remaining 49% are of other varieties,” Habibollah Jahansaz was also quoted as saying by IRNA.
The official added that out of the total green leaf production, more than 25,750 tons of processed tea have been produced, which shows a 25% rise compared with the similar period of last year.
The crop undergoes three harvests a year: the spring harvest that starts in late April, the second in summer begins early June and the last one in autumn starts late September.
The second harvest has come to an end and farmers are awaiting the third. During the first and second harvests, green tea leaf yields amounted to 55,000 tons and 59,000 tons respectively.
Jahansaz said low levels of precipitation at the beginning of summer had a negative impact on the harvest but this was later compensated by favorable weather.
In May, Jahansaz noted that 135,000 green tea leaves are estimated to have been harvested in the current Iranian year, 4,000 tons more than last year.
There are currently 28,000 hectares of tea plantations in Iran, 22,000 hectares of which bear yields, according to Iran Tea Organization figures. More than 55,000 farmers earn their living through tea cultivation in Iran’s northern provinces of Gilan and Mazandaran where the crop is considered an economically strategic commodity.
Some 90% of Iran’s tea plantations are located in Gilan Province. Lahijan County in eastern Gilan is known as Iran’s tea production capital.
Iran's Tea Association puts domestic demand for tea at 120,000 tons per year.
Jahansaz said 30,000 tons are produced locally every year.
Tea is mainly imported to Iran from India and Sir Lanka. Turkey, Germany, China, Japan, Vietnam, Kenya and Poland are other exporters of the product to the country.
Iran consumes about 5% of the annual world tea production.
Tea imports into Iran stood at 17,800 tons worth $90.8 million from March 21 to July 6, registering a 4% and 9% growth in weight and value respectively, according to the latest data released by Islamic Republic of Iran Custom Administration, IRNA reported.
Tea imports hit 17,100 tons worth $83.2 million in the corresponding period of last year.
Iran also exports tea, although the volume is not much compared to imports. Over the first four months of the current fiscal year (March 21-July 21), Iran reportedly exported more than 3,800 tons of tea.
