The Dubai Tea Trading Centre (DTTC), an initiative of the Dubai Multi Commodities Centre Authority (DMCC), announced that it transacted a record 10.6 million kilos of multi origin tea in 2010, up 41 per cent over 7.5 million kilos handled in 2009.

Dubai’s strategic location has helped the emirate become an important regional centre for tea value addition and transhipment services.

Tea imports into Dubai grew 15 per cent to 116.5 million kilos from January to November 2010, compared to the same period in 2009. This was in part due to substantially higher crop yields from major black tea producing countries such as Kenya and Sri Lanka in 2010. Another contributing factor was good demand at higher prices due to the shortfall in stocks, from lack of rain in those countries, carried over from 2009.

“Dubai, given its strategic location, ease of transacting business and modern port facilities, is increasingly recognised as an important hub by major tea producers, buyers and blenders and DTTC, in particular, as an outsourcing centre that can offer customers high quality, reliable and scalable services,” stated Malcolm Wall Morris, chief executive officer, DMCC.

“The Middle East and CIS countries currently account for over 27 per cent of the total tea exports from the producing countries. Given those region’s fast growing populations we expect DTTC to continue its strong growth and to further enhance the tea trade through Dubai.”

DTTC has members from across the tea trade supply chain including tea producers, exporters, regional importers and international merchants.

“Volumes across our value added services of blending, tea bag packing and loose tea packing grew over 100 per cent compared to 2009. As the customer demand for these services continued to grow during the course of 2010, DTTC invested in machines and manpower to cater to this additional requirement,” added Sanjay Sethi, director, DTTC.

Dubai remains the second largest export destination for both Indian and Sri Lankan tea. DTTC presently stores tea from 13 producing countries, including Kenya, India, Sri Lanka, Indonesia, Malawi, Rwanda, Tanzania, Zimbabwe, Ethiopia, Vietnam, Nepal, China and Iran.-TradeArabia News Service