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The Sri Lanka Tea Board (SLTB), in collaboration with the University of Peradeniya, introduced tea and its varied production components into the curriculum of the Agriculture degree of the university.
“Academic interest in the tea industry will exemplify its image as one of the leading international beverages world-wide”, says SLTB Chairman, Jayampathi Molligoda.
The inclusion of tea as a subject in the university curriculum would also further enhance its importance and help recognize its economic potential, he noted.
Addressing participants of the Peradeniya University at the Hantane Tea Museum, Molligoda stressed that the holistic commitment of undergraduates within the discipline of agriculture will auger well for the tea industry and the economy of the country as a whole.
The Chairman further said the vast extents of the tea industry was not only of relevance to agriculture, but what was of overall importance was that the sector was responsible for over one million people directly dependent on the industry.
Tea plantation workers, smallholders, tea factory owners, brokers, shippers, international retailers, brand emergence and literally a wide cross-section of interest sectors were involved in the production and export of tea, he said.
“Tea exports generate US$ 2 billion in revenue to the country annually”, Molligoda added.
The academic involvement of the Peradeniya University in the tea industry would further ensure that production, currently at around 300 million kilos annually, would further increase over the next few years, he said.
Professor Buddhi Marambe, introducing the panel for discussion, said the degree program at the Peradeniya University included the tea industry and inputs from the Tea Research Institute (TRI), which will contribute towards an increase in tea production.
The panel discussion included the Dean, Faculty of Agriculture, Prof. Gamini Pushpakumara, Tea Commissioner, Jayantha Edirisinghe, Deputy Chairman, Planters’ Association of Ceylon, Senaka Alawathegama and Brian Baptist, a representative of the Brokers’ Association of Ceylon.
A visit to the Tea Museum, with further detailed discussion on all aspects of the tea industry, was facilitated by Assistant Director, SLTB, Dhanushka Karunaratne.
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