Rooted in resilience: Why Regenerative Agriculture is the future of Sri Lankan tea

ON a misty morning in Nuwara Eliya, where the hills once shimmered like emeralds under a sheath of dew, the silence is broken only by the brittle crunch of dry tea leaves underfoot. But this cradle of Ceylon tea, famed from London to Beijing, is faltering. Soil, once fertile, now lies tired from years of chemical overload. Pest outbreaks are more frequent. Fertiliser prices have soared beyond reach. And the cup, once golden, is losing its richness. “The rain used to come like clockwork,” says Gamage Bandara, a second-generation tea farmer I met during one of my trips to Sri Lankan tea gardens. “Now, it either pours like a flood or disappears for weeks. The leaves don't know when to grow anymore.” Gamage's lament echoes through the central highlands of Sri Lanka, where tea is more than a crop—it's heritage, livelihood, and national identity all steeped into one.

- By Dr. Shatadru Chattopadhyay

Sri Lanka's tea industry once the pride of Ceylon and the third-largest tea exporter globally is gradually wilting under the weight of environmental and economic distress signalling a crisis beneath the green canopy.

Amidst these compounding crises, regenerative agriculture emerges not as a niche idealism but as a strategic necessity. Rooted in ecological principles and traditional knowledge, regenerative practices focus on rebuilding soil health, increasing biodiversity, and restoring the ecosystem services on which tea production ultimately depends. Unlike organic farming, which can often be prescriptive and yield-focused, regenerative farming emphasises long-term resilience, carbon sequestration, and farmer autonomy, as detailed by the Rodale Institute.

As global buyers from Unilever to niche ethical tea brands increasingly shift toward carbon-neutral, traceable supply chains, Sri Lanka has a window of opportunity to rebrand its tea not just as premium, but as planet-positive. The world's largest regenerative agriculture certification standard, Regenagri, offers a chance to lead that transformation.

Regenagri: The global benchmark for regenerative agriculture

Regenagri is the world’s largest regenerative agriculture initiative, headquartered in London, UK, with over 2.2 million hectares under certification—more than any comparable program. Incubated by Solidaridad, the world’s oldest and largest sustainability organisation, Regenagri operates as a Community Interest Company (CIC), jointly owned by farmers, businesses, and NGOs, ensuring equitable governance and shared accountability.