Sri Lanka tea output dips 14.3-pct in June, Will miss full year target: Tea Board

COLOMBO, July 27 (Reuters) -Sri Lanka’s tea output in June fell 14.3 percent from a year earlier because of heavy rain the previous month, a media report said.

Production in the first six months has fallen by 11.1 percent , a Reuters report said. "There was heavy rain in May and that is the main reason for the fall,” S. A. Siriwardena, director general at the Sri Lanka Tea Board, was quoted as saying He also added that Sri Lanka would miss its full-year target of 338 million kg. “There can be a 5-10 percent shortfall against last year’s total production,” Siriwardena said. “There are issues with fertiliser and the Government’s ban on some pesticides.

All these will have an impact on production.” Sri Lanka’s 2015 tea output fell 2.7 percent to 329 million kg from the previous year and missed forecasts for the second consecutive year because of heavy rains.