Farmer Facing Losses: 'Big Companies Buy Tea at Very Low Prices'

Tea imports to Azerbaijan have increased. According to the State Customs Committee, from January to November 2024, tea imports grew by 3.3% year-on-year to 12,893 tons in volume and by 4.5% in value, amounting to $67.715 million.

Tea exports also rose during the same period, with a 4.5% increase in volume to 679.4 tons and a 1.6% increase in value to $5.998 million. However, the volume of imports outpaced exports by a factor of 19.

The State Statistics Committee reported that Azerbaijan produced 11,528 tons of tea from January to November 2024, an 8.9% year-on-year increase. However, experts believe that not all of this tea is domestically grown, as some imported tea is simply repackaged locally.

In 2018, Azerbaijan adopted a State Program for the Development of Tea Growing for 2018–2027. The program aims to increase green tea leaf production to 8,500 tons and expand tea plantations to 3,000 hectares by 2027. Currently, tea harvest volumes are reported to be eight times below the target.

The Agricultural Research Center of the Ministry of Agriculture noted in its "Agriculture" Bulletin that 1,041 tons of tea were harvested in the first 10 months of 2024, down from 1,102.4 tons in 2023—a reduction of 100 tons.

Salim Hasanov (name changed), a farmer in the Astara region, told Radio  Azadliq that he planted tea on 3 hectares of land in 2023: "Tea farming is very expensive. Tea is a water-intensive crop, but water is both costly and scarce. You must set up your irrigation system without any assistance."

Hasanov also stated that he could not apply for subsidies, resulting in his tea plants drying out: "I planted tea on allocated land. Since I didn’t have a state registry extract for the land, I wasn’t eligible for subsidies. I've faced significant losses. Other tea farmers are also struggling because large companies buy tea at very low prices—1.8 AZN per kilogram of tea leaves."

Contrary to these claims, the Ministry of Agriculture told Turan that state support for tea farming is expanding yearly: "According to the decision of the Agricultural Subsidy Council, as of September 1, 2024, farmers will receive a subsidy of 12,000 AZN per hectare for tea plantations established with a rain irrigation system by May 31, 2025. Additionally, the state will subsidize 40% of the cost of rain irrigation systems set up in tea plantations."

The ministry also noted that subsidies are available for previously established plantations: "Farmers will receive 800 AZN per hectare for plantations set up within the last three years and 250 AZN per hectare for those established before 2019."

Vahid Maharramov, an agricultural expert, told  Radio Azadliq that despite six years since the adoption of the state program, green tea production has not reached the desired level: "While the program aims to expand tea plantations to 3,000 hectares by 2027, only 1,000 hectares have been cultivated six years after the program's launch. It's unlikely this will improve in the future, as no significant measures are being taken. Annual production remains at 1,000 tons, unchanged from pre-program levels."

Maharramov is skeptical that production can increase eightfold within two years: "In comparison, in 1988, the Lankaran-Astara region had 13,400 hectares of tea plantations producing 34,500 tons of green tea leaves."

He attributes the challenges to several factors: "Serious artificial problems have been created. Farmers complain about inadequate water supply, making production nearly impossible under these circumstances. Additionally, pests and diseases require quality pesticides, which need to be either produced locally or imported. Monopolies must be eliminated to make these accessible to farmers. Currently, the opposite is true, as fertilizers are also of poor quality and expensive, leading to stagnant productivity."

Maharramov also highlighted a shortage of professional specialists in the tea farming sector.