India Imposes Strict New Rules on Tea Imports, Threatening Nepali Exports

Kathmandu. Today, the Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock Development celebrated the 30th National Tea Day. On the occasion, Minister of Agriculture and Livestock Development Gita Chaudhary stated that investment in tea will be increased in the coming year, new markets will be identified, and young and women entrepreneurs will be encouraged.

The government celebrates Tea Day every year and offers good wishes. However, this year, tea farmers were not just looking for good wishes; they were hoping for a solution on how to deal with the undeclared blockade recently imposed by India on Nepali tea.

Neighboring country India has announced new and extremely strict rules for tea imports, effective May 1. India's decision is certain to harm Nepali tea exporters.

What is India's New Rule?

According to the new notice issued by the 'Tea Board of India', strict lab testing of every consignment of tea entering India will now be mandatory. India has introduced such a rule to prevent possible adulteration in tea and ensure quality. The Indian government has issued a new 'Standard Operating Procedure' for tea imported from all countries. While exports were previously carried out through normal procedures and partial sample testing, now every vehicle and every consignment will be mandatorily tested.

According to this, each consignment must be tested in an accredited laboratory to ensure compliance with the regulations of the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India. Importers must pre-register the date of tea arrival and detailed container information on the Tea Council's portal to obtain a 'Provisional Clearance Certificate'. Exporters or importers will have to pay Indian Rupees 11,120 plus GST for each sample test. This will significantly increase export costs.

After the tea sample is collected for testing, the tea must be kept in a designated warehouse until the final report is received (approximately 15 to 20 days). During this period, the tea cannot be sold or re-exported. Tea Board officials will collect two samples of 500-500 grams within 24 hours of the container's arrival or from the warehouse.

If the first sample fails, the importer can request a re-test at another lab by paying INR 15,000 and GST again. If the second test also fails, the tea must be destroyed or sent back to the country of origin. However, 'Instant Tea' and 'Ready-to-Drink' tea categories are currently exempt from this cumbersome rule.

86 Percent of Tea Exported to India

According to the Nepal Tea and Coffee Development Board, India is the largest market for Nepal's tea exports. According to Dr. Deepak Kharel, spokesperson for the board, Nepal exports about 15,600 metric tons of tea annually, of which about 14,500 metric tons (86 percent) goes to India.

The sudden imposition of strict rules by a market that consumes such a large quantity of tea is certain to directly and severely impact the Nepali tea market. According to spokesperson Kharel, this rule will not only make the export process cumbersome but also has the potential to stop exports altogether by repeatedly questioning the quality of Nepali tea.

In the past, India has occasionally stopped Nepali tea at the border citing quality issues, but this time it is trying to enforce strictness legally by making rules. According to Nepali tea traders, this rule is like a 'non-tariff barrier' for Nepal. According to tea trader and vice-chairman Shivkumar Gupta, this new arrangement has caused disappointment among traders. 'When it takes 10 to 20 days for the report to come after collecting samples at the border, the tea-laden vehicles will be stopped at the border. This increases transportation costs on one hand, and on the other hand, traders' capital gets tied up for a long time,' says Gupta.

According to Gupta, who exports tea to India, there is a lack of adequate and secure warehouses for tea storage in the Nepal-India border area. 'When loaded vehicles remain under the open sky, sun, and rain for a long time, the original taste, aroma, and quality of the tea are likely to be compromised,' he says.

India's Interest in Protecting Darjeeling Tea Brand

Tea traders believe that the long-standing pressure from Darjeeling tea producers has played a role in India imposing these restrictions. Darjeeling tea industry players have been alleging that cheap Nepali orthodox tea is being imported into India and mixed with 'Darjeeling Tea' and sold in the global market. Traders believe that as Nepali tea began to strongly compete with Darjeeling tea in the global market, India is trying to block Nepali tea under the pretext of protecting its brand.

Not only this, but Indian buyers are also being intimidated. 'Activities like raiding the warehouses of Indian traders who buy Nepali tea and getting samples failed have made Indian traders hesitant to buy Nepali tea,' says a tea exporter.

Immediate Diplomatic Initiative Needed

Traders are demanding that this problem, being purely commercial and diplomatic in nature rather than just technical, should be resolved at a high political level. Nepal's Department of Food Technology and Quality Control's laboratory tests and certifies the quality of tea. The Tea Producers Association has stated that the Nepali government should pursue negotiations with India to get recognition for the reports from Nepali laboratories.

'If India accepts the certification from Nepali labs, the hassle and cost of repeated testing at the border will automatically be eliminated,' says the association's chairman Aditya Parajuli. He stated that although the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India has already listed Nepali tea, diplomatic efforts are necessary for its full implementation and procedural simplification.

Tea farmers say that the Ministry of Agriculture should immediately brief the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Prime Minister's Office on this issue and initiate dialogue with the Indian Ministry of Commerce through the Nepali Embassy in New Delhi. They have stated that Nepal needs to have a clear trade policy and a long-term understanding with India to permanently end the problems that arise in tea exports every year.

60,000 Jobs in the Tea Sector

Tea is one of Nepal's major export agricultural crops. Tea cultivation is spread across 31 districts nationwide, with over 15,000 farmers depending on it. Similarly, it has created approximately 60,000 direct jobs through 171 tea estates and 120 small and medium tea processing centers. At a time when the country's trade deficit is widening, Nepal exports tea worth NPR 4.59 billion.