30 December 2017 12:33 am
The Planters’ Association of Ceylon (PA) yesterday commended the Plantation Industries Ministry, Sri Lanka Tea Board and all other state and diplomatic officials that played a role in negotiating the lifting of the temporary suspension of Lankan tea imports by the Russian Federation.
“The prompt and strategic intervention of key officials across state institutions including Minister of Plantation Industries, Navin Dissanayake, Sri Lanka Tea Board Chairman, Rohan Pethiyagoda together with officials from the Department of Agriculture, and the National Plant Quarantine Service was crucial in bringing about such a swift resolution to such a serious issue that is acceptable to all stakeholders, within the span of just two tea auctions.
“While the limited disruption to exports of Sri Lankan tea to such an important market as the Russian Federation is unfortunate, we hope that this incident will serve as further impetus for the continuing improvement of phytosanitary surveillance and quarantine processes within the domestic supply chain,” PA said in a statement.