Galahitiya

Galahitiya is a tea estate located in Sabaragamuwa Province, Sri Lanka, at an altitude of just 48 metres above sea level. The estate produces black tea and is recorded as supplying Finlays, one of the major participants in the global tea supply chain. The operating company is not currently identified in trade records.

Terroir & Climate

At 48 metres elevation, Galahitiya occupies low-country terrain in Sri Lanka's wet zone, where temperatures tend to remain consistently warm year-round and rainfall is generally abundant. Estates at this altitude typically experience faster leaf growth and shorter plucking cycles than their high-grown counterparts, conditions that tend to favour higher yields and robust, quickly maturing leaf.

The latitude—just under seven degrees north of the equator—means minimal seasonal variation in daylight or temperature. Low-elevation Sri Lankan estates in this climatic band generally produce teas with a different flavour architecture to the celebrated high-growns: the leaf develops less slowly, and the biochemical processes that generate complexity during withering and oxidation tend to proceed more rapidly in the warmer ambient conditions typical of the lowlands.

Tea Produced

Galahitiya produces black tea. Estates at this elevation in Sri Lanka typically yield a cup that is full-bodied, brisk, and strong in colour—characteristics that tend to make low-grown Ceylon teas well suited to blending, particularly in products where strength and colour are prioritised over the more delicate aromatics associated with high-elevation manufacture. The teas from this altitude band generally lack the bright, fragrant top notes of mid- or high-grown Ceylon but often deliver a malty robustness valued in certain export markets and in CTC-style applications.

Supply Chain & Market Position

Galahitiya is recorded as supplying Finlays, a vertically integrated tea business with extensive blending, packing, and distribution operations across multiple continents. Finlays sources from a broad base of origins and typically serves both retail brands and food-service channels, suggesting that Galahitiya's output enters a supply chain oriented towards volume and consistency. The presence of a single recorded buyer of this scale implies that the estate's production is absorbed into blended products rather than sold as a single-origin or estate-specific offering, a common pattern for low-elevation Sri Lankan leaf.

• Recorded supplier to  Finlays

Location & Neighbouring Estates

Galahitiya lies at 6.8152, 80.3245 in Sabaragamuwa Province, Sri Lanka. Its 48 m elevation is the joint 67th highest of 75 estates we map in Sabaragamuwa Province. The nearest estates in the TeaTrade directory, measured point-to-point from these coordinates, are:

• Parakaduwa — 2.4 km away
• KDU, Deerwood — 6.2 km away
• KDU, Peak Paradise — 8.4 km away
• Kendalanda — 9.0 km away
• Forest Hill Tea — 9.5 km away · Hospital Road Erathna

Estates at a Similar Altitude to Galahitiya

Elevation shapes how slowly leaf matures, so we match Galahitiya (48 m) with estates within 150 m of its height that are not its neighbours. Each is shown with its own 2025 climate. Galahitiya recorded 4,348 mm in 2025, 78% more than the 2,439 mm average across these estates: at the same height, local weather and exposure matter as much as elevation.

Estate	Where	Elevation	Rain 2025	Mean high
Ihala Panapitiya	Sabaragamuwa Province, Sri Lanka	48 m	4,005 mm	29.9 °C
Hunan Tea Group Co., Ltd. - final packing and refining processing	Changsha, China	47 m	1,348 mm	24.8 °C
Uduella	Southern Province, Sri Lanka	49 m	3,022 mm	29.9 °C
Owaggachara Tea Estate Factory	Rangamati, Bangladesh	46 m	2,525 mm	30.0 °C
Yame Tea Kumaen	Tokyo, Japan	50 m	1,293 mm	21.1 °C

Galahitiya Compared with Sabaragamuwa Province

In Sabaragamuwa Province, Galahitiya is wetter than 81% of the others by 2025 rainfall; lower than 92% of the others by elevation; warmer than 73% of the others by daytime temperature. The table sets Galahitiya against the 74 other estates we map in Sabaragamuwa Province, so you can see whether it is typical for its region or an outlier.

Measure	Galahitiya	Region median	Region range
Elevation	48 m	167 m	26 to 1,355 m
Annual rainfall (2025)	4,348 mm	3,390 mm	2,018 to 4,839 mm
Mean daily high	30.0 °C	29.5 °C	21.5 to 30.9 °C
Mean overnight low	22.2 °C	21.9 °C	15.7 to 23.0 °C

Observed Climate at Galahitiya (2025)

ERA5 reanalysis data modelled for Galahitiya’s coordinates recorded 4,348 mm of precipitation across calendar year 2025. The wettest month was November (621 mm) and the driest was February (86 mm). Daytime highs averaged 30.0 °C and overnight lows 22.2 °C over the year; April was the warmest month and January the coolest.

Metric	2025 value
Annual precipitation	4,348 mm
Wettest month	November (621 mm)
Driest month	February (86 mm)
Mean daily high	30.0 °C
Mean overnight low	22.2 °C

Frequently Asked Questions

Where is Galahitiya located?

Galahitiya is in Sabaragamuwa Province, Sri Lanka, at coordinates 6.8152, 80.3245, at an elevation of about 48 metres.

What type of tea does Galahitiya produce?

Galahitiya is recorded as producing black tea.

Which buyers does Galahitiya supply?

Public supplier disclosures record Galahitiya as supplying Finlays.

How much rain does Galahitiya receive?

ERA5 reanalysis data for the estate's coordinates recorded 4,348 mm of precipitation in 2025, peaking in November (621 mm).

How does Galahitiya compare with estates at a similar elevation?

Galahitiya recorded 4,348 mm in 2025, 78% more rain than the 2,439 mm average of estates at a similar elevation.

Data sources: public supply-chain disclosures (Ethical Tea Partnership member lists, Rainforest Alliance certificate holders and retailer supplier disclosures); climate figures are ERA5 reanalysis modelled for the estate’s coordinates via Open-Meteo (calendar year 2025); coordinates and elevations from geocoded records. Spotted an error? Email [email protected].