Financial Tribune- Tea production is estimated to increase by at least 5% this year, thanks to favorable weather conditions and abundant precipitation, the head of Tea Farmers Union said.
This years tea harvest will begin in the next few days, Iraj Housemi was also quoted as saying by Young Journalists Club. According to Mohammad Vali Rouzbehan, the head of Iran Tea Organization, last year (March 2016-17) the government purchased from farmers more than 139,000 tons of fresh tea leaves worth 2.34 trillion rials (close to $62 million), of which 31,200 tons of dried tea were produced.
The government has a guaranteed purchase system in place for many crops, including tea, to build up its strategic reserves and control prices in the domestic market. Tea is cultivated in Irans northern provinces of Gilan and Mazandaran where 50,000 families earn their living from tea farming on more than 25,000 hectares of fields.