Tea productivity in the smallholder sub sector has been relatively lower than in the estates sub sector over the years and the yields are still well below potential. This study investigated the efficiency of adoption of tea production technologies and some policy factors contributing to low tea productivity in the smallholder tea sub sector.The results of this study have policy implications at both the micro- and the macro-economic levels. If the factors that constrain tea production at the farm level are identified, suitable measures can be drawn to address the problems within the current policy framework in the short run. For example, if farmers are inefficient in the use of strategic inputs such as fertilizer, they may profitably reduce the amount spent on
that input or increase supervision especially where labour for tea plucking is adequate. If the monthly producer price has a significant effect on green leaf supply, it can be adjusted upwards in the short run to give farmers incentives to supply more tea leaf.”
