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SHINKYARI, Nov 23 (APP):On a misty morning at Shinkyari in Mansehra district, the scent of fresh tea leaves drifts over the rolling green slopes of the National Tea and High-Value Crops Research Institute (NTHRT).
To the untrained eye, these terraced rows might appear modest, but for the scientists and farmers tending them, they represent a quiet revolution that could save Pakistan’s billions in foreign exchange if given the support it desperately needs by the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Government.
Hazara and Malakand divisions, blessed with salinity-free soils, abundant rainfall and diverse ecological zones, are naturally primed for tea cultivation in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. Yet, despite decades of research and proven success, commercial tea farming remains a largely untapped opportunity.
Pakistan’s tea production began in 1958, followed by formal research under the Pakistan Agriculture Research Institute in 1976.
In 1986, with the establishment of NTHRT in Shinkyari, tea cultivation truly took root.
Over the next two decades, a black tea processing unit (2001), a green tea factory (2005), and a modern Turkish processing plant were added, creating the foundation for a domestic tea industry in KP.
But while the fields were growing, Pakistan’s tea imports were swelling even faster.
According to the Pakistan Bureau of Statistics, tea imports from July–February 2021-22 surged to $423.466 million, up 11.64% from the previous year. In just February 2022, imports skyrocketed nearly 60%, reflecting Pakistan’s deepening reliance on foreign tea to satisfy one of the country’s most cherished daily rituals.
In 2023, Pakistan’s tea exports were valued at $18.9 million, making it the 34th largest global exporter. The main destinations for these exports were the United States ($8.8 million), Saudi Arabia ($1.5 million), and Afghanistan ($1.4 million). However, this is a small fraction of Pakistan’s total exports, and the country is a net importer of tea, as evidenced by its status as the world’s largest importer of tea.
Dr. Abdul Waheed, Director of NTHRT, said that tea cultivation was a highly profitable business and a farmer can earn millions from a few acres of investment.
“Pakistan imported 258,000 tons of black tea worth over $596 million and 300 tons of green tea costing $60 million during 2020-21,” he explained. “At this pace, our import bill may cross Rs 300 billion in the coming years.”
Referring to Pakistan tea exports in 2024, he said the data shows it imported over $468 million in tea during the first nine months of FY 2024-25 and was a top export market for Vietnam’s tea in March 2025. Overall exports of coffee, tea, mate, and spices totaled $120.51 million in 2024.
Waheed said Pakistan has more than 64,000 hectares of land in KP and Azad Kashmir suitable for commercial tea cultivation. However, only 80 hectares are currently being used for tea cultivation, which is extremely low.
Tea research scientist Dr. Naveed Ahmed believes that tea farming could dramatically change rural economies if proper training is provided to farmers.
“It’s a lucrative business,” he said. “A farmer can earn up to Rs 1 million profit per acre with an investment of only Rs 0.2 million.”
Tea plants take five years to mature but once established, they can produce for 120 years—an intergenerational asset. With 158,000 acres in KP and 4,000 acres in Azad Kashmir found suitable for cultivation, the potential for expansion is immense.
Swat, Mansehra and Batagram areas receiving over 100mm of rain are particularly ideal. Before 2008–09, he said tea thrived on 350 acres in Swat alone. Today, scientists at NTHRT are cultivating nine varieties of tea and producing plants capable of transforming the region’s agricultural landscape.
Inside the Shinkyari facility, about 33 acres are dedicated to tea gardens and research on fruits, vegetables, medicinal herbs, olives and tea varieties.
The institute can produce four million tea plants and process 10 tons of tea leaves annually. It has even exported six tons of tea to a foreign country and distributed over 100,000 tea plants to local farmers.
Yet commercialization remains slow. “We need substantial investment,” Dr. Waheed emphasized. “Farmers need support, especially after the recent floods damaged fields in Ogi, Siran, Bhattal and Shinkyari.”
He believes the government must step in by providing financial incentives and declaring tea and olive plantations as forestry so they aren’t cleared for other uses.
“The last monsoon badly affected my tea plants,” said Sajid Tanoli, a farmer, looking for CM Sohail Afridi Government support.
Dr. Abdul Rauf, Director General Research at KP Agriculture Department, confirms that scientific research on tea is complete and Shinkyari type tea in market produced. What remains is the push to take this knowledge out of research plots and into farmers’ hands.
“Encouraging farmers is the next step,” he said. “The potential is here; we just need to commercialize it.”
Back on the slopes of Shinkyari, workers pluck tea leaves under the soft autumn sun. Each handful is a reminder of what Pakistan stands to gain: reduced import bills, empowered farmers and a thriving local industry.
With timely government support, the country could not only grow its own tea varities but reshape its economic future, one leaf at a time.