The Hindu Business Line : Homedale Estate tea fetches record price

Coonoor, Dec 23 Homedale Estate created history when its RD grade, sold by Global Tea Brokers, was bought by Sri Abirami Enterprises for Rs 100 a kg in Sale No 50 of the Coonoor Tea Trade Association (CTTA).

This was the highest price got by the factory in 2007. It was also the highest price fetched by any CTC tea sold in Sale No 50.

Homedale Estate has been consistently getting top bracket prices although it had not topped the auctions. In the last auctions, it got Rs 99 a kg.

Darmona Estate, sold by J Thomas and Co, has been the only other brand which has been getting over Rs 100 a kg in the CTTA auctions. This week, its RD grade fetched the highest bid of Rs 87. Among other top price fetchers, Quinshola got Rs 85, Hittakkal Estate and Green View Estate Rs 80, Vigneshwar Estate, Warwick, Professor, Highfield Estate, Kannavarai and Ella Rs 79, Shanthi Supreme, Selva Ganapathy Supreme and Kotagiri Estate Rs 78.

Orthodox dusts

Quality winter Nilgiri high-grown flavoury orthodox dusts, mostly BOPD grades, entered the premium market. Corsley got the highest bid of Rs 123, followed by Kodanaad Rs 121, Curzon, Tiger Hill, Kairbetta, Havukal and Mailoor Rs 115, Prammas Rs 112, Kil Kotagiri and Nonsuch Rs 108, Sutton, Woodlands and Chamraj Rs 105, Quinshola and Coonoor Tea Estate Rs 100.

Quotations held by the brokers indicated bids ranging from Rs 37 to 41 a kg for the plain dust grades and Rs 65 to 82 for the brighter liquoring sorts. They ranged Rs 38 to 43 for the plain leaf grades and Rs 60 to 74 for the brighter liquoring teas.