The Tea Board has announced that the district average price for green leaf during June in the Nilgiris will be ₹14.87 a kg.
Tea Board’s Executive Director M Balaji said this has been fixed based on the consolidated auction sale average of CTC teas from bought leaf factories during May. He said all bought factories have been instructed to adhere to this average price while buying green leaf from small growers this month.
He also said that all field officials of the Board have been instructed to ensure that no bought leaf factory in their jurisdiction paid a price less than this district average in June.
This price is 42 paise more than ₹14.45 a kg fixed for May. This is the highest price in the last one year, the previous high being in June 2019 at ₹15.43 a kg. In the first fortnight of April, most bought leaf factories did not manufacture tea because of the lockdown. Besides, the Coonoor Tea Trade Association (CTTA) conducted only one auction in April (on April 20).
However, in May, the CTTA conducted five auctions. The first auction for June will conclude on Friday.