Planters also feel that pressure tactics are being deployed by some traders to seek extended credit lines, as the latter now seek to make payments after the trade is completed. 
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Planters also feel that pressure tactics are being deployed by some traders to seek extended credit lines, as the latter now seek to make payments after the trade is completed. Indian tea consignments continue to be accepted and purchased by foreign and Indian buyers, the Chairman of the Indian Tea Exporters Association (ITEA) Anshuman Kanoria said hours after news reports claimed that a series of tea consignments have been rejected by buyers on the presence of pesticides and chemicals beyond permissible limits.
Speaking with Business Today TV, Kanoria claimed he had been misquoted on the matter and that there was no truth in such reports.
When contacted, some Indian tea planters offered a similar view, saying their consignments had not been rejected and they continue to export tea directly to clients in Germany, the United Kingdom, Japan and Poland among other markets. "They have tough food safety tests, but our tea consignments have not been rejected", a tea grower said.
Trade insiders also said they have not heard of any Indian consignment of tea being rejected, with some adding that such a claim that damages the prospects of growing Indian tea exports at a time when Sri Lankan supplies have been hit, may be a fallout of a fight between some buyers and sellers.
"Tea sellers buy tea from various plantations and blend it with other varieties they source in India and overseas, before exporting the same. Some traders may be seeking guarantees from planters to buy back the tea if it is rejected, even after they blend the tea", a grower said.
Planters also feel that pressure tactics are being deployed by some traders to seek extended credit lines, as the latter now seek to make payments after the trade is completed.
Amidst this, planters feel they would have to adopt a strategy of starting direct exports to buyers and conduct business with merchants who do not insist on conditions, effectively bypassing merchants.
In 2021, India exported nearly 196 million kg of tea worth over $ 700 million, with the major buyers being the Commonwealth of Independent States nations and Iran.
Kanoria adds that the economic crisis in Sri Lanka is an opportunity for Indian tea to garner a larger share of the global tea market, adding that India was well on its way to record a billion dollars' worth of tea exports in the future.
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