The Hon. K.V. Samantha Viddyarathna - Minister of Plantation and Community Infrastructure
The Minister said past approvals for tea factories were often granted without proper feasibility studies, harming nearby operations, and stated that the new Government will require such studies before approving new factories. He identified inadequate green leaf supply as a central problem and outlined a strategic plan to raise finished tea production from 262 million kilograms last year to 400 million kilograms by 2030. He said the Ministry plans to replant marginal tea lands, revive closed factories, and transparently allocate some to suitable investors through partnerships involving underutilized lands and public assets. He also said he would meet factory owners within a week to discuss their issues and possible Ministry relief.
Verbatim record (translated)
Machine-translated from Sinhala / Tamil / English¶ 01 Many factories were established without proper feasibility studies—sometimes due to political or individual preferences—adversely impacting nearby factories. The new Government has decided that approvals for new tea factories will only follow proper feasibility studies.
¶ 02 A key current problem is insufficient green leaf supply to sustain optimal operations and incomes. We have prepared a strategic plan to pull the tea industry out of its present crisis. Finished tea production last year was 262 million kg. Our plan is to increase finished tea to 400 million kg by 2030. That requires increasing green leaf supply; with sufficient leaf, factory capacity utilization and profitability improve. We believe this will enable reopening of some closed factories.
¶ 03 As the Hon. President stated in the Budget, underutilized lands and public assets will be partnered with the private sector to enhance productivity. Accordingly, we are preparing a program to replant marginal tea and revive closed factories, including allocating closed factories to suitable investors transparently. As cultivation improves and factories come online, we can regain market share. I have also set a meeting with factory owners within the next week to discuss their issues and the relief we can provide as a Ministry.
Provenance
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- Hansard, Wednesday, 18 June 2025 ·No. 1751280704002343 ·English daily/uncorrected Hansard
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Cite as: The Hon. K.V. Samantha Viddyarathna - Minister of Plantation and Community Infrastructure. 10th Parliament, Parliament of Sri Lanka. Hansard, 18 June 2025. No. 1751280704002343. Politick, https://staging.politick.io/lk/speeches/6786