Ceylon Tea party hooks world’s biggest tea consumer

Thursday, 20 July 2017 00:12 - - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}

Turkey’s food multinational Beta bullish on Pure Ceylon Tea

‘Want a closer look’ - Beta’s Chairman Ugur

Beta Tea is world’s 12th-largest tea firm.

‘Turkey fourth largest Ceylon tea buyer’ - Bathiudeen

Turkey is the largest per cap tea consumer in the world

Ceylon Tea’s 150-year celebration, the Global Ceylon Tea Party, has hooked the biggest tea company in the world’s largest per capita tea market.

“Our tea brand in Beta Tea and our firm, Beta Food Industry and Trade Inc, is one of the largest firms,” stressed the Chairman of the Tea Food Industry and Trade Besir Ugur, who is also the Chairman of Turkey’s Foreign Economic Relations Board’s (DEIK) Sri Lanka Business Council.

Ugur was meeting Industry and Commerce Minister Rishad Bathiudeen at the ministry offices yesterday. Joining the discussion was Turkish Ambassador to Sri Lanka Tunca Özçuhadar.

“I was greatly inspired by the Global Ceylon Tea Party event held in Ankara. We are a major importer of Ceylon Tea and we use it heavily in our blends in Turkey,” said Ugur.

“My Beta Food Industry and Trade Inc is the 12th-largest tea firm in the world. The Ceylon Tea we buy is sold in Turkey and Central Asia. We like to expand our tea cooperation with Sri Lanka and during my visit here I intend to study more,” he added.

Even though China is the world’s largest tea market, Turkey is the biggest tea consumer in the world per person at 6.87 kg per capita.

DFT-25-5 Minister of Industry and Commerce Rishad Bathiudeen (centre) meets the Chairman of Turkey’s Tea Food Industry and Trade Ltd. Besir Ugur (right) and Turkish Ambassador to Sri Lanka Tunca Özçuhadar

Minister Bathiudeen welcomed Chairman Ugur’s interest to partner with Ceylon Tea, saying: “According to the Department of Commerce of Sri Lanka under me, two-thirds of our annual exports to Turkey are made up of Ceylon Tea. In fact, Turkey was the fourth-largest buyer of Ceylon Tea after Iran, Russia and Iraq last year. Also, we exported $ 1.2 billion in tea to the world last year and 8% of it was taken by Turkey. Our exports to Turkey last year of all products were at $ 154 million and tea exports were two-thirds of this at $ 100 million. We are encouraged that Beta Tea wants to buy more and more from Sri Lanka and seeks bigger cooperation here.”

Turkish Ambassador to Sri Lanka Tunca Özçuhadar stressed the importance of continued trade between both countries and added that the time has come to opt for bigger bilateral trade from the present annual $ 223 million (2016).

In the five-year period from 2012-2016, Sri Lanka’s trade with Turkey has surged by 15% from 2012’s $ 190 million to $ 223 million in 2016.