斯里兰卡近期陷入政治和财政动荡，因为大规模的示威活动仍在继续，这个拥有2200万人口的国家正在苦苦挣扎。食品通胀超过50%，烹饪煤气、燃料和可靠电力严重短缺，多种因素引发骚乱。斯里兰卡外债违约，货币贬值，信用评级阻碍了外部投资。政府银行家在国际货币基金组织(IMF)的救助谈判中陷入僵局，因为提到多种艰难的改革，包括提高税收和政府变革。茶叶生产商正面临着上述所有挑战，但锡兰茶叶品牌仍然具有弹性。去年，锡兰茶产业创造了13.2亿美元的外汇，出口3亿吨茶叶，其中2.7亿吨是高价值的条形茶。
Sri Lanka is in turmoil politically and financially; the country of 22 million is struggling as widespread demonstrations continue. Unrest is tied to food inflation exceeding 50%, with critical shortages of cooking gas, fuel, and reliable electricity. The country has defaulted on its foreign debt, and its currency devalues with a credit rating that discourages outside investment. Government bankers are at an impasse in negotiating a bailout from the International Monetary Fund that will depend on difficult reforms, including higher taxes and governance changes. Tea producers are confronting all the above challenges, yet the Ceylon tea brand remains resilient. Last year, the industry generated $1.32 billion in US foreign currency, exporting 300 million tons of tea, of which 270 million was high-value orthodox tea.
与2020年相比，2021年锡兰茶叶出口收入增长了6.72%。根据出口发展局的数据，截至12月，每个子类别都报告了数据增长，袋泡茶出口增长84%，预包装茶叶增长10%，散装茶销售额增长2.5%，速溶茶销售额增长19.5%，绿茶增长22.8%。
Export earnings increased 6.72% during the 2021 calendar year compared to 2020. Every subcategory reported growth, with exports of tea bags growing 84%, tea packets up 10%, sales of bulk tea up 2.5%, instant tea sales of 19.5%, and green tea up 22.8% through December, according to the Export Development Board.
Niraj de Mel与Bigelow 茶叶公司的首席执行官Cindi Bigelow和Prasanna Panabrooke
行业资深人士Niraj De Mel于2022年6月被任命为斯里兰卡茶叶局主席，这是他自2004年以后，第二次被任命此职位。在他与PMD茶叶公司总经理Dananjaya Silva的对话中，Niraj de Mel解释了斯里兰卡茶产业面临的挑战和解决方案。
Industry veteran Niraj De Mel was named Chairman of the Sri Lankan Tea Board in June 2022, his second appointment to a position that he previously held in 2004. In this discussion with correspondent Dananjaya Silva, Managing Director at PMD Tea, de Mel explains the challenges and solutions facing Sri Lanka’s tea industry.
斯里兰卡依靠有韧性的茶叶产业
Sri Lanka Relies on a Resilient Tea Industry
在他45年的茶叶职业生涯中，Niraj de Mel曾担任评茶师、代理商、出口商和教育者。他曾是斯里兰卡茶叶出口商协会和科伦坡经纪人协会的前任主席，并曾担任科伦坡茶叶贸易商协会的副主席。他是科伦坡梅尔茶学院的创始人和负责人。
During his 45 years in tea, Niraj de Mel has worked as a taster, broker, exporter, and educator. He is past chairman of the Tea Exporter’s Association and the Colombo Brokers Association and served as vice chairman of the Colombo Tea Traders Association. He is the founder and director of The Mel’s Tea Academy in Colombo.
Dananjaya Silva：有专业人士表示，看到您回到斯里兰卡茶叶局重新掌舵时，他们感到非常高兴。鉴于当前的政治局势，您的职位安全性如何?
Dananjaya Silva – Tea professionals globally say they are happy to see a safe and steady hand on the tiller as you return to steer the Sri Lanka Tea Board. Given the current political situation, how secure is your position?
Niraj de Mel：首先，让我告诉您关于我6月20日任命之前的一些情况。在五月中旬，行业代表们聚在一起，告诉了当局他们的想法。此外，他们还决定了最适合茶叶研究所和斯里兰卡茶叶局职位的人。出于显而易见的原因，我被要求回到我以前的职位上。前任主席与他们一起见了种植业部的部长，尊敬的Ramesh Pathirana博士，讨论了这些事情，并告诉他，由于关于肥料的错误决定而出现重大损失，现在是时候听专家的了。此外，整个行业也将确切地告诉他们事情应该如何运行。在过去的155年里，我们一直在这样做，正是通过那次谈话，我今天坐在这个位置上。
Niraj de Mel – Well, to start, let me tell you a bit about the developments before my appointment [on June 20]. Come the middle of May, the industry got together, and because they thought it was time, we told the authorities what we knew best and what was best for the industry. So, arising from that, they also decided on the people best suited best-suited for the positions at the TRI [Tea Research Institute] and the Sri Lanka Tea Board. I was asked to step back into my previous role as chair for obvious reasons. The immediate past chairman went along with this delegation and met the minister [Minister of Plantation Industries, the Hon. (Dr.) Ramesh Pathirana] to discuss these things and told him that after the debacle as a result of a wrong decision on fertilizer, it’s time that we get the feedback from the experts. Plus, the industry will tell them exactly how things should be run. We have been doing this for the last 155 years, and it’s arising from that conversation that I’m in this seat today.
Dananjaya Silva：去年10月，包括大多数化肥在内的化学投入品被禁令停止进口，这个事的影响依然存在。
Dananjaya Silva – The ban on importing chemical inputs, including most fertilizers, was halted in October, but the effects of the setback linger.
Niraj de Mel：错误已经造成，但情况已经改变。因为俄乌战争，世界上一些最大的化肥供应商之间出现矛盾。从那以后，化肥稀缺，价格飙升，而我们的货币本身也贬值了，这让普通茶农面临的问题更加复杂。现在他们几乎不可能负担得起化肥的价格。
Niraj de Mel – Mistakes were made, but circumstances that led to that decision have changed. The big development is a result of the Russian-Ukrainian war, a conflict between some of the world’s largest fertilizer suppliers. Fertilizer has since become scarce and prices went sky high, impacting Sri Lanka at a time when our currency itself also depreciated, compounding matters for the average tea farmer. It’s now virtually impossible for him to afford this kind of price.
为了解决这个问题，斯里兰卡茶叶局自1月份以来一直在考虑一个倡议。我从会议记录中看到，他们希望从促销税中筹集资金，用于促进贷款计划，以便农民获得肥料，用于这些缺乏营养的茶树。
To address that, the Sri Lanka Tea Board considered an initiative that has been knocking on the door since January. I see from the minutes a request for funds from the promotion levy to be used to facilitate a loan scheme so that farmers get fertilizer to start feeding these bushes, which have been starved for nutrients.
斯里兰卡茶叶局已向近100家工厂交付了肥料，以提供给小农户和区域茶园。他们正在努力确保茶园在大约一个半月时间内有足够的肥料。
The board has since delivered fertilizer to nearly 100 factories to offer to smallholders and regional plantation companies. They are working to ensure that the estates will have sufficient fertilizer within about one and a half months.
来源：中国茶叶流通协会
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