Sri Lankan tea ranks the best among world teas and is highly accepted around the world for its taste and aroma. For more than a century, tea has been the biggest provider of employment, export earnings and government revenue. However at present the industry is experiencing difficulty in holding its position due to the competition from other countries, especially the emerging producers like Kenya. In order to maintain the position, Sri Lankan tea industry needs to look into the draw backs and find new ways in overcoming them. Main areas of concern are the cost factor and the quality factor. Tea yield plays a vital role in both these factors.
This research was conducted to find the factors affecting the yield of tea, the level of impact they make on tea yield and also to provide appropriate recommendation pertaining to findings. The five factors affecting the yield were identified and selected form the literature and the interviews with the resource personnel in the industry, was used to prepare the conceptual model. The Research was carried out in Akuressa in the Southern Region using convenience sampling method. A hypothetic deductive methodology was followed with a correlation analysis to identify the relationships between the independent variables and the dependent variable. The required data was collected through a questionnaire with 48 questions from 220 tea planters who own plantations in the area. SPSS and Excel were used to analyze the data with statistical measurements after satisfying the validity and reliability.
Outcome of the analysis explains that by adherence to the “Industry Specified Agricultural Practices”, applying proper “Soil Conservation Methods”, taking steps to minimize “Post Harvest Losses”, proper education, training and improving skill levels of the employees engaged in all areas have a positive impact on the tea yield. It was also very clear that when suitable weather prevails, the impact on yield is positive. The finding also proved that identified independent variables have a strong positive correlation with the dependent variable.
Objectives of this study were successfully achieved based on the results and the effect of the analysis is discussed in detailed in the report together with the recommendations. Thus the results will be helpful to find solutions to overcome the prevailing situation in Sri Lankan Tea industry.
Research by: Mahesha Piyasena
Supervised by: Nadeeja Dodamgoda
