Tea production in Turkey is concentrated on the eastern coast of the Black Sea. Due to the humid climate, relief features and proximity to the sea, ideal conditions for tea cultivation are created. The main part of tea plantations is concentrated in three provinces: Rize, Artvin and Trabzon. This is where most of Turkey's tea is grown and produced. Only natural conditions are used to grow tea. The leaves are harvested by hand or with special scissors to ensure high quality products. Local farmers make sure that the cultivation is ecologically clean and do not use chemical fertilizers and pesticides.
Tea harvesting begins between the last week of April and the first week of May, depending on weather conditions. It is usually harvested three, sometimes four times over a period of 6-7 months, ending in September or October. Turkey is among the top five leading countries in terms of gross harvest of tea leaves, the main raw material for tea production. In 2023, 1,356.6 thousand tons of tea were harvested. At the same time, in 2022, a significant part of tea plantations suffered from abnormal drought in summer, due to which the harvest of tea leaves fell by 12.7% compared to 2021.
Turkey almost fully meets its demand for tea through its own production. From 2019 to 2023, the volume of tea production in the country increased on average by 3.3% and reached 343.5 thousand tons. In 2022, production declined due to lower yields amid unfavorable weather conditions. Despite the decline in production, tea consumption continued to grow at a high rate, also due to significant stocks of tea products built up in 2020-2021. Over the past five years, Turkey's tea imports have remained virtually unchanged (19.5 thousand tons in 2019 and 17.0 thousand tons in 2023), while decreasing significantly in 2022. In turn, exports for 2019-2023 increased from 4.2 thousand tons to 5.3 thousand tons, indicating the growing popularity of Turkish tea in the world, especially in European countries.
Turkey is the world's leading per capita tea consumer. In 2019-2023, the country's tea consumption per capita increased by an average of 5.1% annually to reach 4.6 kg per year by the end of 2023. Tea is consumed in the country in much larger volumes than its main commodity-substitute - coffee (about 0.9 kg per person per year).
In 2023, the structure of tea sales in Turkey was as follows: 70.2% is retail and 29.8% is catering. In the last 5 years, the sales structure has been distributed in roughly the same ratio (except during the pandemic period, when there was a strong decline in sales in the catering sector). Also, some of the products in Turkey are consumed unpackaged and sold through various markets and bazaars (the share of these products in total consumption is about 10-13%).
The volume of retail sales of tea in 2019-2023 was in the range of 188.9-206.4 thousand tons and increased by 6.7% annually. In 2023, the total volume of retail sales reached the highest value for the last five years and amounted to 244.7 thousand tons, which is 5.0% higher than the level of 2022. The largest increase in sales was recorded in 2020 - by 8.5% compared to 2019, which is due to the restrictions imposed in connection with the COVID-19 pandemic, including restrictions on the operation of restaurants and cafes.
Black tea is the most popular type of tea in Turkey. In 2023, it accounted for 98.2% of total retail sales, or 240.4 thousand tons. Fruit/ herbal and green tea accounted for 1.0% and 0.7% of sales in 2023, respectively. These types of tea continue to gain popularity in the country - consumers especially appreciate the health and immunity benefits of such products.
Black tea is the most popular type of tea in Turkey. In 2023, it accounted for 98.2% of total retail sales, or 240.4 thousand tons. Fruit/ herbal and green tea accounted for 1.0% and 0.7% of sales in 2023, respectively. These types of tea continue to gain popularity in the country - consumers especially appreciate the health and immunity benefits of such products.
The main type of tea packaging in Turkey is soft packaging made of combined materials (paper and plastic), which in 2023 accounted for 72.4% of sales of this type of products in volume terms. This type of packaging allows to preserve the quality, taste and aroma of tea for a long time, as well as provides convenient storage. Doypack packaging accounted for 8.4% of retail sales, while flexible plastic packaging and rigid cardboard packaging accounted for 6.5% each. Paper packaging and metal cans were significantly less used for packaging of tea sold in Turkey - 3.5% and 2.7% of retail sales in volume terms.
The most popular tea pack sizes in Turkey are 501-1,000g (53.3% of sales in volume terms in 2023) and 301-500g (17.6%). These are the pack sizes in which leading Turkish tea producers such as Çaykur and Doğuş Çay sell their products. Since tea is one of the most popular beverages in Turkey, the country's residents prefer to buy this product in larger and more economical package formats. Many tourists bring tea from Turkey as a souvenir or for personal consumption. Sales of 101-300g packs accounted for only 13.1% of sales in 2023. However, there has been an increase in sales of smaller packs. Sales of tea in packages weighing up to 50g have been gradually increasing over the last five years (from 6.8% in 2019 to 10.2% in 2023). Packages weighing 51-100 g are the least popular - 5.8% of total sales.
The state-owned Çaykur has held a significant share of the tea market in Turkey for the past decades. At the end of 2023, its share amounted to 35.6%. The second in terms of sales is the international company Lipton Teas and Infusions, which accounted for 25.4% of the market in 2023. Also among the most popular tea producers in the Turkish market are local companies Doğuş Çay (10.9%) and Doğadan (8.1%). Cumulatively, the top four suppliers accounted for 80.0% of tea sales in the country in 2023.
In 2023, Turkey's tea imports totaled 17.0 thousand tons valued at US$36.4 million. This was up 57.2% in volume terms (+6.2 thousand tons) and 52.8% in value terms (+$12.6 million) from 2022. In 2019-2023, the volume of tea purchases on foreign markets decreased annually by an average of 3.4% in volume terms and 2.9% in value terms.
The basis of Turkey's tea imports is traditionally black tea, which in 2023 accounted for 99.5% of shipments in volume terms (16.9 thousand tons) and 98.4% in value terms (USD 35.8 million). Green tea imports accounted for a negligible share of 0.5% and 1.6%, respectively. Relative to 2022, there was a significant increase in imports of black tea - by 57.3% in volume terms (+6.2 thousand tons) and by 54.8% in value terms (+12.7 million USD). Imports of green tea increased by 39.4% in volume terms to 92.0 tons, while in value terms purchases decreased by 17.0% to USD 565.0 thousand. USD. At the same time, imports in 2023 remained below 2019-2021 levels.
In 2023, the largest share among exporters of tea to Turkey was Sri Lanka - 52.7% or 9.0 thousand tons. The second place in 2023 was taken by Iran, which accounted for 24.8% of Turkish imports of this type of product. The top three main exporters in volume terms were India, which accounted for 9.5% of imports of the category. Cumulatively, the top 8 tea exporting countries to Turkey accounted for 99.6% of Turkey's imports of this product category.
In 2023, Turkey increased purchases of tea from Sri Lanka by 77.9% (+3.9 thousand tons), Iran - by 69.5% (+1.7 thousand tons) and India - 2.4 times (+939.0 tons) against the level of 2022. Meanwhile, the volume of imports of this product from Kenya (-16.6% or -305.0 tons) and the Netherlands (-29.2% or -106.0 tons) decreased.
The main supplier of tea to Turkey in value terms in 2023 was Sri Lanka, which supplied products worth USD 20.3 million (55.9% of imports). Iran (14.0%), India (11.7%) and Kenya (10.8%) were also among the top exporters to the Turkish market. Cumulatively, the top 8 tea exporting countries to Turkey accounted for 97.2% of the country's imports.
In 2023, Turkey increased tea purchases from Sri Lanka by 85.9% (+$9.4 million), India by 2.2 times (+2.3 million) and Iran by 66.4% (+2.0 million) relative to the 2022 level. At the same time, tea imports from Kenya (-14.1% or -$645.0 thousand), the Netherlands (-29.1% or -$308.0 thousand) and China (-41.7% or -240.0 thousand) decreased.
In 2023, the average import price of tea in Turkey decreased by 2.8% to USD 2,137 per ton. The most expensive products were supplied from China at USD 7,149 per ton (3.3 times higher than the average price) and the Netherlands at USD 2,914 per ton (36.4% higher)
per ton (36.4% higher). The most competitive price was recorded for supplies from Iran - USD 1,205 per ton (43.6% lower than the average price) and Malawi - USD 2,096 (1.9% lower).
