Technology problems in the Sri Lankan tea industry : a study based on regional plantation management companies

Abstract

The main objective o( this paper is to identify the technology issues ill the tea industry in Sri Lanka with special emphasis on the twenty plantation management companies. 111 audition to these twenty companies, interviews was conducted with a wide category of stakeholders in the tea industry, such as tea research, tea administration, Ministry Plantation and suppliers to the industry, etc. In this research, the tea production process was modeled into a simplified value chain, which identified three primary activities along with the - supportive activities. But marketing and sales promotion parts do not cover this case paper. The final outcome of this paper is to show the current status of product and process technology in the tea sector and its implication 0on the growth and development o] tea industry. Especially, the focus has been to see what strategies can be adopted to overcome technology barriers in the Sri Lankan tea industry to increase competitiveness by minimizing costs and improving productivity to reach the next higher/eve/. of this industry. It was seen that a change is needed in Ihe perceptions and attitudes on technology, which needs to flow from organizational structure arid culture it-self to use maximum of this sector of the growth and development of Sri Lankan economy. .