Garaina tea is premium quality world market standard
Wau Waria’s Garaina tea has been confirmed to be a top organic premium quality tea, that can generate about K20 million to K30 million annually and compete on the world market.
In a recent consultation workshop, International Tea Specialist, Gayal Perera described Garaina Tea as a premium product with the quality and growing conditions required to compete internationally, strengthening the economic case for rehabilitating the long-dormant plantation.
Perera, a Sri Lankan tea specialist and Eco metric Limited partner, has visited Garaina twice in recent weeks to inspect the plantation area and assess its production and market potential.
He specialises across the 'Field to Export' tea value chain from growing and processing, through to packaging and getting the finished product onto market shelves.
“The estimated long-term tea production potential is about 600 to 620 tons per year. Upon inspections, I’m confident to say that Garaina tea is a high value, single origin PNG tea with progressive organic certification, it is top premium quality with the potential to compete on the world market,” Perera said.
Under a proposed 400-hectare state land, Garaina has the potential to produce an estimated 600 to 620 metric tons of premium tea annually.
Monitoring and evaluation expert and adviser to the Department of National Planning and Monitoring, Wilco Liebregts, gave an estimate that 600 tonnes of premium-quality tea produced from the 400 hectares could generate between K20 million and K30 million every year, depending on the market.
“Six hundred tons of premium quality tea grown on 400 hectares could bring in about K20 million to K30 million a year, based on the lows and highs in prices, but the nucleus estate has to be commercially viable and profitable so that it can stand on its own feet,” he said.
Liebregts was also part of the team involved in the drafting of the Medium-Term Development Plan 4 (MTDP4) in which Garaina Tea was featured.
He also referred to an Asian Development Bank (ADB) study assessing small and medium enterprises, potentially worthy of support, saying Garaina Tea was highly regarded in that assessment and so, the economic opportunity extends beyond the tea itself.
The MP, Marsh Narewec said the objective to bring the key players together, was not simply to reopen an old plantation, it is to establish a commercially sustainable industry around a premium agricultural product that was once enjoyed by the Queen of England.
“The purpose of bringing all you key stakeholders together is to present, share constructive ideas together and agree on how we can partner to get this project off the ground."
“The World Bank and donor partners may come with funding, but they will require counterpart funding from us. We cannot entirely depend on development partners to fund everything,” Narewec said.
He said his DDA will start off with Phase One of the project and expect other stakeholders to step in as part beneficiaries of this important project.
In response, the DAL Policy and Dialogue Adviser, Robyn Ekstrom welcomed the collaborative approach, saying DAL is pleased to be part of the initiative and is prepared to support the district’s efforts to revive the historic tea project.