TEA INDUSTRY IN BANGLADESH: MARKETING SYSTEM AND PRICE BEHAVIOUR

This study is an attempt to examine the existing processing, marketing system and price behaviour of tea in Bangladesh. It is mainly based on primary data collected from 10 estates and 46 traders. Price data were collected from secondary sources. Processing cost differs significantly among different types of estates. Tea is sold in two ways: direct sale from the estate and sale by auction. The participants involved in the tea marketing system are the tea estate, broker, bidder, exporter, manufacturer, blender, distributor, wholesaler and retailer. Marketing cost was the highest for bidders and the lowest for blenders. Net margin and return on investment was found highest for retailers. Profit from packet tea was greater than that from open tea. Price instability, inadequate storage facilities, strike, lack of market information, scarcity of plywood, shortage of capital, higher amount of charges and barriers created by law are the important problems faced by the tea producers and traders. Tea production increased mainly due to rise in yield and growth rate of former period was much higher than that of latter period. Although nominal price increased but real price remained more or less same during the study period. Nominal price rise in the first period was found higher than that of second period. Marketing margin in the first period remained static whereas it went up significantly in the latter period. Seasonal price and quantity variations were not related and variation in quantity was higher than that of price