Ceylon Tea creates buzz in London and Scotland parallel to IFE Trade Exhibition

The Sri Lanka Tea Board together with the High Commission of Sri Lanka to the UK kicked off one week of Ceylon Tea Promotional events alongside the participation at IFE Exhibition with an event at the High Commission in London followed by events in Glasgow, Auchenblae- the Birthplace of James Taylor, (Father of Ceylon Tea) and Aberdeen in Scotland, from 25 to 29 March.

The International Food and Drink Event (IFE), a premier food and drink trade exhibition was held at ExCel, London from 25 to 27 March. The Sri Lanka Tea Board participated at the exhibition which was facilitated by the High Commission of Sri Lanka in London, where ‘Pure Ceylon Tea’ was received with great enthusiasm by international buyers and visitors. 

The Sri Lanka Tea Board pavilion was inaugurated by the High Commissioner of Sri Lanka to the United Kingdom Rohitha Bogollagama, along with Sri Lanka Tea Board Chairman Niraj de Mel.  Sri Lanka Tea Board The Director (Promotions) Pavithri Peiris and High Commission’s Minister (Commercial) Somasena Mahadiulwewa joined at the inauguration along with other invited guests from the UK tea trade and the media. Furthermore, representatives of the 6 Ceylon tea exporting companies who participated through the facilitation by the Sri Lanka Tea Board were also present at the opening ceremony. The visitors to the SLTB stall were served with Ceylon tea from the seven regions of Sri Lanka and Ceylon tea sample sachets were distributed at the pavilion. The participation at the trade fair provided a great opportunity for Sri Lanka to capitalize on the global tea market.

 In addition to above, the High Commissioner and Sri Lanka Tea Board Officials met with the European Specialty Tea Association (ESTA) in line with Sri Lanka›s participation at the IFE 2024 on 26 March. The ESTA presented a draft MOU on collaboration with the Sri Lanka Tea Board and it was agreed to continue the interactions.

 ESTA President Nigel Melican together with its Executive Director David Veal and the other directors and members of the ESTA who attended this interactive meeting mentioned that they are pleased to work with the High Commission to take forward the ideas generated to a strategy called «Ceylon Tea, to make fashionable again.» The meeting was also attended by Ceylon Artisanal Tea Association (CATA) Chairman Simon Nihal Bell and contributed with important ideas on the development of the specialty tea sector from Sri Lanka›s view point.

After this meeting the directors and the members of the ESTA attended the Ceylon Tea and Sri Lanka Food Business Networking reception held at the High Commission which was attended by nearly 100 members of the UK tea and food trade, senior UK officials including the Department of Business and Trade and the Commonwealth related bodies, trade chamber representatives, media and influencers, and also the exhibitors who came from Sri Lanka to showcase their products at the Sri Lanka Tea Board and Sri Lanka Export Development Board pavilions at the IFE London 2024.

High Commissioner and Tea Board officials addressed as well as made presentations on Ceylon Tea at a session organised at the Glasgow Caledonian University which was a joint Ceylon Tea promotional effort by Sri Lanka Tea Board and Sri Lanka High Commission in London. This seminar on Ceylon Tea with a tea tasting session was organized by the Glasgow Caledonian University and was held at GCU premises on 28 March.

On 29 March, together with MP and UK Energy Minister Andrew Bowie and Sri Lanka Tea Board Chairman Niraj de Mel, High Commissioner Bogollagama commemorated the 189th Birth anniversary of the Father of Ceylon Tea, in his birth village  - Auchenblae, in Aberdeen UK and placed a wreath of flowers at the monument of James Taylor. The High Commissioner and Tea Board Officials also visited the house in which James Taylor grew up in Auchenblae.

 Bogollagama and de Mel hosted a Ceylon Tea Gala Dinner at Mary Culter Hotel in Aberdeen, UK, on 29 March which was attended by nearly 80 members of the Scotland tea and food trade, senior officials, trade chamber representatives, media and influencers and a host of Sri Lankans now domiciled in Scotland. A memento appreciating the great contribution by James Taylor, Father of Ceylon Tea, to the people of Sri Lanka, was presented to Anne Lawson of Auchenblae Heritage Society at the dinner.

 During this visit, Sri Lanka Tea Board and High Commission officials understood that Sri Lanka needs to refocus its promotional activities with a view to regaining the UK tea market through various collaborations and joint actions based on the dynamics and the consumer preferences of the tea. Appropriate measures need to be taken to upgrade the quality standards by deploying new technology and innovation in the tea industry while protecting the indigenous methods, the ethical practices, the focused manufacturing and branding etc, in the tea plantations and to focus on specialty tea promotions in the UK.

 Accordingly, a Working Committee to achieve such collaboration was proposed by the High Commissioner Bogollagama as it required a deep study and research in order to penetrate the market.

 Currently, Sri Lanka is the third largest tea exporter to the world with exports around $ 10 million worth of tea to the UK alone. As far back as in 1967, Sri Lanka had sold 78,484 MT of tea into the UK accounting for 34% of total tea imports. This contraction was due in the main to the shift from loose tea consumption to the CTC in the form of tea bags. The significant changes in the UK market in favour of CTC tea worked in correlation with domestic socio economic factors as the greater labour force participation of women and efficiency in using tea bags over the traditionally brewed tea in a pot became particularly popular and attractive to British households. Meanwhile the shift towards the use of CTC teas was heralded and leveraged by a massive level of production of such teas from Kenya and East African countries where the supply increased at much higher levels of productivity and growth than orthodox varieties. The UK market was transformed into a predominantly tea bag market accounting for approx. 96% of tea cups drunk daily in the UK, which are brewed from tea bags.