INDIA
India Tea
India’s total tea output is expected to fall by 10% in 2014 because of lack of rain and warmer temperatures 2-5 degrees higher than normal. Higher temperatures also increase pest infestations which can in turn affect the growth of the plants and these difficult conditions have already affected production of the country’s top quality teas in all regions. In Assam, crop yields were down by 17.8 million kg (4.5%) for the January-February period and North India was down by 22.3 million kg for the first six months of the year. South India’s overall production is expected to reach normal quantities because a fall in the first part of the year due to poor weather conditions has been counterbalanced by an increase resulting from good rainfall in June and July. Long dry periods and changing patterns of rainfall are expected to cause similar problems in the future and the Indian tea industry knows that it must address such issues caused by climate change.