【Kandy, Sri L】Sri Lanka: The Uncomfortable Truth Behind Your Cup of Tea

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Editor’s Note

This article investigates the ethical claims of major tea brands, focusing on conditions in Sri Lanka’s renowned tea-growing regions. It is part of our ongoing coverage of labor and sustainability in global supply chains.

Hidden Realities in the Tea Fields

NAOMI SELVARATNAM, Reporter: I’m in Kandy, the gateway to Sri Lanka’s famous tea fields… I would love some tea, please… This is one of my favourite rituals, and I’m not alone. Tea is the second most consumed drink in the world, right after water. And on the boxes of the big tea brands, there’s a promise that their product has been ethically and sustainably produced wherever it’s grown. But is it true for tea grown here in Sri Lanka? For the last few weeks, we’ve had people going out to tea fields across the region. Estates like these are so remote that no one comes here unless they have a reason to, and that’s why it remains hidden.

“Maybe the auditors don’t get to talk to us, because we might tell them the truth.”

NAOMI SELVARATNAM, Reporter: We’re heading deep into the tea fields to investigate if the labels live up to their promises.

The Global Tea Auction

It’s 10am in Colombo, and I’m here to see where the price of tea is set in the global market… Hi, Anil.

ANIL: Hi. Welcome. Great to have you here.

NAOMI SELVARATNAM, Reporter: Lovely to be here.

ANIL: Lady, you’re gonna be seeing some very fine Ceylon teas soon, so let’s do some tasting.

NAOMI SELVARATNAM, Reporter: That sounds fantastic… Anil Cooke is one of Sri Lanka’s most experienced tea brokers.

“What we do as brokers is we look at the tea and decide what it’s going to probably sell at, at the following week’s auction.”

NAOMI SELVARATNAM, Reporter: These leaves have been sent by plantations from across Sri Lanka’s growing regions.

ANIL: So the floral taste.

NAOMI SELVARATNAM, Reporter: That is strong… It takes a discerning palate to rate these leaves… So you could tell immediately what the value of the tea is just based on taking a quick slurp.

“Well, telling the value of a tea is about faith and understanding the market as well, right. We ship tea to about 150 countries around the world.”

NAOMI SELVARATNAM, Reporter: Sri Lanka was once the world’s biggest black tea exporter, but now it’s at a crossroads. It’s being undercut by cheaper offerings from China, Kenya, and India, and some are questioning whether it can survive.

“We are a high cost, high value producer, but the margin is wafer thin. So a small movement of price either way would mean that often the producer is not selling their teas at the price that they produced it. And this is the dance with the devil that happens every week. It is much more than the hundred tea bags we have in a box on the shelf that is going roughly at the price of a cup of coffee.”
The Role of Certification

The auction gets underway, and representatives from all the big tea brands are here online. Each ping signals a sale. Many brands use third party auditors to certify that minimum standards are met. Approved estates are placed on a list where they can be purchased from at any time.

“Certification is when an independent observer trusted by the consumer, the brand, and the producer, offers an opinion based on a study and scrutiny and inspection.”

NAOMI SELVARATNAM, Reporter: And what are some of the major certification schemes at the moment?

ANIL: The one that is most followed is the Rainforest Alliance, and to a lesser extent, we have Fair Trade.

NAOMI SELVARATNAM, Reporter: What’s the purpose of certification?

“I believe that certification is being adopted by brands, and in turn, the producers to communicate a message to a prospective consumer that certain standards have been made. So this is a effective way of communicating a complex message to a wide body of people.”
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⏰ Published on: March 04, 2025