JAKARTA (Yosefardi) – The Cibuni tea estate in West Java province produced 655 tons of tea in the third quarter of 2013, an increase of 10.6% from the corresponding period of 2012.

Sipef, owner of the estate, said tea production in nine months of 2013 inched up only 0.78% to 2055 tons from 2039 tons in January-September 2012.

Average price of tea, meanwhile, grew slightly to US$2880 per ton from US$2850 per ton in third quarter of 2012.

“Prices of the Mombasa tea auctions, to which our prices are linked, were relatively stable during the summer months, but started slipping from end August onwards. The record production in Kenya earlier in the year, and to a lesser extend good production in Sri Lanka and India, is having a price pressuring effect on our teas. This trend continued in September,” Sipef said.