That really takes the biscuit! Extreme weather disrupts tea harvest in India as fears are brewing that the price of the humble cuppa could soon boil over

Extreme upwind successful India's main tea-producing region has disrupted nan yearly harvest, arsenic fears turn complete nan rising value of nan humble cuppa.

According to India's Tea Board, nan mean value of Indian beverage leaves is presently £2 per kg, up almost 20 per cent connected past year, having been driven up by heatwaves and flooding.

The Indian government's prohibition connected 20 pesticides has further affected accumulation successful areas specified arsenic Assam - which accounts for much than half of nan country's beverage output.

Prabhat Bezboruah, a elder planter and a erstwhile president of nan Tea Board, told The Times: 'Extreme upwind events are hurting beverage production. Excessive power successful May, followed by flooding successful Assam, are reducing output.'

Britons portion an mean of 100 cardinal cups of beverage a day, aliases astir 36 cardinal a year, making this state India's apical export destination for tea.

This year, India is expected to export astir 100 cardinal kilograms of nan product, a autumn of 7 per cent successful comparison to nan grounds 1.394 cardinal kilograms they produced past year.

Mr Bezboruah predicts that nan wholesale value of beverage will beryllium pushed up by nan problems named supra by betwixt 16 per cent and 20 per cent this year, arsenic much than half of India’s beverage leaves are harvested betwixt July and October.

Currently successful nan UK, nan mean value of a packet of 80 teabags is astatine £2.64, jumping by 11 per cent complete nan past twelvemonth from £2.37, according to nan Office for National Statistics.

Further value rises will dangle connected really overmuch of nan higher costs manufacturers and retailers will beryllium consenting to soak up, arsenic good arsenic nan magnitude of clip near connected nan supermarkets’ existing beverage proviso contracts.

Problems person been caused crossed India, including successful cities specified arsenic Delhi, owed to nan dense monsoon rain.

Tea accumulation successful nan state was down by much than 30 per cent during May compared to nan aforesaid clip past twelvemonth aft a heatwave near harvesters struggling to prime leaves.

During that period successful 2024, India produced conscionable 91 cardinal kilograms of tea, nan lowest amount produced during that period for much than a decade.

Other than nan Irish and Turkish, Britons portion much beverage than immoderate nationality successful nan world.

In caller years, beverage tastes successful this state person changed, pinch nan depletion of herbal teas rising while nan fame of nan classical English meal has been connected nan decline.

Britons spent much connected herbal teas than accepted beverage for nan first clip past year, according to marketplace investigation patient Kantar.

Separate investigation suggests that a mostly of group would now, fixed nan choice, for illustration a herbal tea.

For those who emotion a classical builders tea, nan bully news is that nan value of beverage is falling.

According to nan ONS, nan costs of full beverage has fallen by six per cent complete nan past year, but nan costs of sweetener has accrued by 8 per cent.