Promoting Sustainability in the Tea Plantations of Sri Lanka

Years of over-farming and unsustainable fertilization practices have left Sri Lanka's iconic tea fields in dire circumstances. In Sri Lanka's mid country, the trial of a new environmentally friendly fertilization technique called 'Biochar' is currently underway. 'Biochar', although a new word, is in fact an old technology; one used by Sri Lankan farmers going back hundreds of years. Now, at the Pelmadulla Tea Estate, the trial sponsored by Dilmah Conservation has being extended. Here, large sections of the tea crop has been treated with 'Biochar', reducing their chemical intake by 50%, resulting in the quality, taste and colour of the tea leaves cultivated.