Pearl River….
After seeing Yangtze in Wuhan & Shanghai and later Huang he in Binzhou we were lucky to see the third largest river Zhu jiang in Guangzhou on 24th November 2007.
And herefrom we wish to restart our tea business with the packaged teas so as to reap the black tea market in China. Presence of Lydia in Guangzhou and a chance meeting with her in Beijing in 2004 and 2007 China Tea Expos has led me into this town which seems to be the part of destiny, which has brought me to China.
Tea Expos in China…
17th to 20th Novenmber and later on from 22nd to 26th November 2007 there were two big tea expos in Quanzhou city of Fujian province for oolong teas and in Gunangzhou city of Guangdong province for pu’erh teas. There was a very strong presence of small tea producers and their extremly good presentations to market teas. Consumers thronged the exhibitions because the otherwise unavailable good quality tea was on display and sale in these exhibitions which was thematic to the core.
Very good Anxi Ti kwan Yin, Da Hong Pao, Rou Gui, Wuyi Rock teas, Lapsang Souchang and Yunnan Pu’erh teas, were presented there alongwith lot of educative material and grand packaging. It was just a sheer luck that I attended Guangzhou tea expo, though there were no plans on my agend to go there. Afterall it is destiny which takes a man where he does not dare to tread.
November 2007 China trip…
It was a state honour to be in Fujian first at Quanzhou and then at Anxi, Fuzhou and Wuyishan and later at Guangzhou, where I got the answer to my questions and key to sucess. In all a grand trip and we returned on 27th after 13 days since begining the trip on 14th November 2007 with Sanyog Tamang.
We also went to Anxi where a seminar was arranged by China Tea Marketing Association and we were lucky to see the Bama tea factory, probably the most modern one in China. Three pretty ladies from France, Barbara, Katrin and Ceil were with me on this trip.
It is Wuyishan, from where Robert Fortune took tea to India thru Fuzhou port in 1830s. Got the documentary evidences of that from a Lapsang Souchong tea maker family who are here since 24 generations, meaning involvement with Wuyi teas since last 500 years.
Attended Guangdong Tea Expo at Guangzhou with Lydia, who shall arrange QS and packaging of our products, which shall be marketed in China. Vincent Ngai, Ms. Xiao Juan and Li Hai Yang were with me virtually for the whole trip. We also met Kings Tea & Blue Lake Foods people.
The India International Tea Convention could become a platform for greater tea exports from India, say traders
Guwahati: The wide bouquet of Indian teas from Darjeeling, Assam and the Nilgiris showcased at the India International Tea Convention, held between 22 and 24 November, prompted the government trade promotion body, Tea Board, to dub the three-day event as a biennial “Grand Indian Tea Party.”
The meeting was attended by more than 400 delegates, including representatives from major foreign tea markets such as Iran, Kenya, Pakistan, Egypt, Germany and the UK.
Minister of state for commerce Jairam Ramesh’s recommendation that the convention be held every alternate year was well received. Basudeb Banerjee, chairman, Tea Board, said the government agency had decided to hold the meet every other year.
India has an annual production of around 950 million kg of tea and a turnover of Rs 6,500 crore. While an Indian tea fair will be held annually in Guwahati, the international convention will be a biennial affair. The venue for each meet will be chosen from tea-producing states such as West Bengal, Assam, Tamil Nadu and Kerala. The next convention is likely to be held in South India, Banerjee added.
The conventions would most likely be held during February or March, the best time to promote the popular winter-flavoured teas, he said.
A cross section of delegates at the convention said the event should be held on a regular basis so that it can be turned into a major event on the global tea calendar—similar to the World Tea Expo held annually from 31 May in the US, which attracts more than 600 exhibitors from all over the world.
Several delegates participating in the tea-tasting session, including the foreign representatives, were amazed by the large variety of teas grown in the different agro-climatic zones of India, said Krishan Katyal, director of tea auction firm J. Thomas & Co. Pvt. Ltd, who conducted the session. A number of delegates were impressed by the teas from the Nilgiris, which could easily compete with the renowned teas from Darjeeling. “It was a new experience, so many teas from one country,” said Sicily Karikui, managing director of the Tea Board of Kenya.
For Nick Revett, director of UK-based retail giant R. Twinings & Co. Ltd, which has been operating in India since 1997, Indian teas meet nearly 20% of his company’s requirements. He refused to give details, only saying that an additional 35% came from China. Given the variety of Indian teas, his company proposes to expand its market, Revett said.
William Gorman, executive chairman of United Kingdom Tea Council Ltd, said tea consumption in his country is growing, especially in the speciality tea sector, where the growth is around 7% annually and that the market is dominated by tea bags.
Franz Thiele, director of German firm Thiele & Freese GmbH & Co., which has been engaged in tea imports since 1873, said that after China, which accounts for nearly 23% of Germany’s tea imports, India is the leading supplier, with around 7 tonnes of imports—a share of 15%, of which a good part is Assamese tea.
Thiele said Europe has stringent laws about pesticide residue and added that the issue can only be dealt with effectively by the trade bodies of India and Europe together.
For meets such as the India International Tea Convention to be a success, it is important that major global trading firms be brought into the fold to understand the huge variety of teas India produces, said Ankit Lochan, export manager of Lochan Tea Ltd, a major exporter of Darjeeling tea based in Siliguri, West Bengal. The convention could become a platform for greater tea exports from India, he added.
Our Chairman, Mr. Rajiv Lochan, is travelling in China.
He will be able to update his blog only on his return on the 27th of November, 2007.
All the tea in China: the political impact of tea
China is the undisputed homeland of tea and tea drinking. References to Chinese tea dates back 5000 years, including the colorful legend of a wild camellia blossom falling into Emperor Shen Nung’s boiled water. Ironically, the extraordinary power of Chinese emperors cannot compare with the political and economic clout of the simple Camilla sinensis bush, better known to the world as Chinese tea.
In ancient China during the Tang Dynasty (618-907) the Chinese used tea as a medicinal drink, often mixing it with onion, orange, ginger and other spices. Tea was not affordable for most and often used as gifts and tribute for the emperor.
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By the Song Dynasty (960-1279) teahouses with elegant porcelain teacups had appeared. The Chinese ground their tea into a powder and whipped it into a fine froth. Making tea vessels became an art form with the tea bowls becoming deeper and wider to aid in whipping. The tea had a light green color so artists designed black and blue bowls to enhance the color of the drink. Teahouses, scented teas, tea tasting competitions, and tea events became the rage among the higher classes.
In the early 1200′s the Mongols invaded China, ushering in the Yuan Dynasty that lasted until 1368. These Mongolians did not pay great attention to tea service but they did adopt the habit of salting their tea and mixing it with milk; they still consume it in this fashion today. Under the Mongols teahouses continued to be popular places for scholars and poets to meet. .
The elegant Ming Dynasty (1368-1644) witnessed the development of different ways to process tea. Parching tea by hand in large cauldrons at different heats and for different amounts of time transformed green tea into completely different drinks: black and oolong versions now appeared. Scented flowered teas also rose in popularity among all classes of people. Steeping whole tea leaves rather than crushing and powdering them became the rage. It was during this time that Europeans discovered Chinese tea.
Among the Europeans the Portuguese Jesuit Father Jasper de Cru was the first to personally encounter tea and write about it in 1560. In 1589 other Europeans read about tea when the Venetian author and Secretary of the Venetian Council of Ren, Gaimbattista Ramusio, credited Asian longevity to their tea drinking. A little while later, in 1597, tea is mentioned for the first time in an English translation of Dutch navigator Jan Hugo van Linschooten’s travels, in which he refers to tea as chaa.
Finally, in 1610 Dutch traders brought back green tea from China and marketed it as an exotic medicinal drink. Over one hundred dollars a pound, it was so expensive that only the wealthy could purchase it, which they did, along with elegant Chinese tea porcelains. By 1662 when Charles II wed his bride, the tea-loving Catherine Braganza of Portugal, tea had become so trendy that alcohol consumption in England declined significantly.
The Portuguese were the first Europeans to commercially trade for tea. They took their cargo to Lisbon, and then shipped it to France, Holland and other Baltic countries. Portugal was affiliated with Holland at that time; tea became very popular among the Dutch. By 1675 tea had lowered in price and was considered a common beverage. Many drinkers mixed it with sugar and ginger.
Interestingly, tea never really caught on with the French. After about 50 years the French went on to popularize wine, chocolate and coffee. Throughout Europe tea was now served in coffeehouses (coffee arrived before tea) called “penny universities” — because a poor scholar could buy a pot of tea for a penny and spend the whole day there conversing with other wits.
In 1618 Chinese ambassadors offered dozens of crates of tea to Czar Alexis as a gift; he refused them as useless. But by 1735 Empress Catherine of Russia had sanctioned tea for trade. Over three hundred camels traveled 11,000 miles for sixteen months to fill her first delivery. The Russians quickly adopted the Tibetan “hot pot” to brew their tea: we know it today as the Russian samovar. By 1900 the first Trans-Siberian railways were in place, causing tea to become cheaper and accessible to the masses. Ordinary Russians quickly acquired the habit of drinking tea with lemon and a lump of sugar stuck between their teeth. Today, tea along with vodka is the national drink of the Russian people.
England was the last European country to start using maritime trade routes in search of tea. In 1600 Elizabeth the First founded the John Company for trade expeditions. In 1773 the John Company merged with the prosperous British East India Company, making it the most powerful monopoly to ever exist in the world. In England tea was now drunk by commoners and nobles alike; by 1654 Chinese tea had definitely replaced ale as the most popular British beverage.
In fact, tea influenced British society so much that English dietary norms changed. The two traditional heavy, massive meals – breakfast and dinner – now added tea to their menu and dinner evolved into two types of afternoon tea service: high tea and low tea. High tea was served in the late afternoon while low tea was served in the mid-afternoon. High tea signified a heavier meal with meat, usually for the working class, while low tea implied gourmet tidbits, cakes and sweets, with the emphasis on presentation and conversation among higher society.
Tea gardens (and later tea dances) became the rage in Europe and America. Ladies and gentlemen took their tea outdoors, listened to bands and socialized. This lenient environment offered the first opportunity for English men and women to mingle freely together in public, and it also allowed people of various social ranks to mix and communicate.
The tip system also evolved out of these gardens: by the waiter’s stand stood a wooden box with TIPS inscribed on it. Guests would drop a coin in the box as they entered, “to ensure prompt service” – waiters would run from kitchens to gardens with hot pots of fresh tea whenever they saw a coin enter the box.
English colonists became aware of tea in 1670. Tea was brought to America by Governor Peter Stuyvesant and became the rage in the Dutch settlement of New Amsterdam (New York). By 1720 the Americans were smuggling Chinese tea into the colonies as contraband and also learning about herbal teas from the Native Americans because the British tea was expensive and highly taxed.
England could not afford to continue paying for tea with gold and silver. To take such large amounts out of the country would have bankrupted the nation. Thus the Opium Wars began with England’s declaration that it was “ready to go to war for free trade” – or – “go to war for the right to sell cheap opium to the Chinese in exchange for tea”. From 1840 until 1908 the English had the military strength to force their opium upon the Chinese and to try to continue to dominate the world market in tea trading.
But the British encountered problems by trying to bully China, and control and tax tea supplies in the New World. In 1773, a group of US colonists protesting the taxation of tea by Great Britain boarded a ship from the British East India Company and dumped its entire cargo of tea into the harbor. This Boston Tea Party was the start of America’s independence from Britain and is also why tea is not subject to import taxes today in the United States.
Moreover, in 1800 three Americans became the continent’s first millionaires by initially trading in Chinese tea. Their success also served to break Britain’s tea monopoly. T.H. Perkins of Boston, Stephen Girard of Philadelphia and John Jacob Astor of New York all began direct trade with China after the American Revolution of 1789. America’s newer, faster clipper ships easily out sailed the English fleet. It is to the great credit of these men that they paid for their tea in gold rather than opium. Pierce founded the Great American Tea Company, which became the Great Atlantic and Pacific Tea Company, still existing today as the modern A & P supermarket chain.
In 1834 Prime Minister Grey ended the British tea monopoly enjoyed by the East India Company. He’s also known now for a tea flavored with bergamot oil that was named after him.
In 1843, after the war, the Chinese speaking Scottish botanist and adventurer, Robert Fortune, snuck into China and smuggled out some tea seeds. With English assistance tea plantations soon sprouted up on the Indian subcontinent. By the late 1880′s many fortunes had been made and lost as the art of tea cultivation was perfected in India. Throughout the nineteenth century the English in India, Sri Lanka and Burma and the Germans in East Africa established tea plantations. China had finally lost her sovereignty regarding tea.
Today, after water, tea is the most widely consumed beverage in the world. It is now grown in Africa, India and other parts of Asia. Ireland currently has the highest per capita consumption of tea in the world while modern China is experiencing a rise in instant commercial teas of lower quality among younger people who profess that they have no time to brew tea properly anymore. Chinese tea is still highly esteemed throughout the world. Indeed, the lesson of how one Chinese herb has profoundly influenced world trade is worth examining, especially as China has now taken her place in the international commercial marketplace.
Valerie Peyre from Switzerland…
Tea has come to be the mainstay of staple beverage in this part of the world and this land of milk, cheese and chocolates is going to be another springboard of Darjeeling teas. Replacement of coffee and a still better answer to the wellness drink research has been the quest of Indian tea grower ever.
No wonder our teamwork catapults us into a name and fame which benefits the real stakeholders of tea industry – the workmen on the plantations. We shall be fulfilling our dream if the enhancement to the lives of these people is achieved.
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Diwali signifies Harvest Festival. As it occurs at the end of a cropping season and has along with the above customs, a few others that reinforce the hypothesis of its having originated as a harvest festival. Every harvest normally spelt prosperity. The celebration was first started in India by farmers after they reaped their harvests. They celebrated with joy and offered praises to God for granting them a good crop.
On the second day of Deepavali, a ritual that is strongly suggestive of the origin of Deepavali as an harvest festival is performed. Worship of the Goddess of Wealth, Laxmi and performance of Aarti are a part of the harvest festival. On this day delicacies are prepared from pounded semi-cooked rice called Poha or Pauva. This rice is taken from the fresh harvest available at that time. This custom is prevalent both in rural and urban areas especially in Western India.
In rural areas, Diwali signifies only this aspect. The reason being the fact that Diwali which is celebrated sometime in October/November co-incides with the end of a harvesting season, known as the Kharif season when the fresh crop of rice is available. Therefore, Diwali is also considered by many rural hindus to be the harvest festival when farmers offer prayers, and express their gratitude to the Almighty for the bounty they received from him.
Govt clears subsidy scheme for tea growers
KOLKATA: In a bid to shore up tea exports, the finance ministry has cleared a subsidy scheme for orthodox tea producers. Orthodox tea, which fetches a decent price in the international markets, is mainly consumed by European Union players led by Germany, the Middle East and the CIS bloc.
Confirming the development, Tea Board chairman Basudeb Banerjee told ET: “The finance ministry and Planning Commission have approved the subsidy scheme for orthodox production for the 11th Plan. The scheme will be effective from April 1, 2007 to March 31, 2012.” The scheme envisages a subsidy of Rs 3 for every kg of orthodox tea production. If the orthodox tea maker produces any extra orthodox tea from his current production level, he will get an additional Rs 2 per kg subsidy.
The industry is upbeat about this development. “This is a good move by the central government. Time has come when producers should focus on more orthodox tea to gain a substantial foothold in the export market. Global consumption of tea is increasing and India should take advantage of the situation,” said Vinay Goenka, president and managing director of Warren Tea. Incidentally, Warren Tea is the largest producer of orthodox tea in the country.
Interestingly, this year, India is slated to produce 10 million kg of additional orthodox tea which will take the orthodox tea production to 90 million kg. The total production of domestic tea is expected to be 950 million kg this year, Mr Banerjee said.
The May to July orthodox production is mainly exported to the EU bloc. Germany is the largest buyer of orthodox tea. The July to August orthodox tea production is picked up by countries like Iran, Saudi Arabia, Qatar and Dubai.
CIS countries and Russia imports October to November orthodox tea production. Tea Board chairman said even though the exports are down in 2007 compared to 2006, the unit price realisation has, however, been higher this year.
“Tea prices are also strong in the domestic market. On an average, CTC tea is higher by Rs 3 per kg in the domestic market,” he said.
Another Step towards Mongolia…
At the opening ceremony of China Tea Expo on 14th October 2007 in Kunlun Hotel in Beijing, we met Wang Xinming, a movie director, Li Guangde, a movie producer and Li Bing, a journalist from a Mangolian film making company, who are making this documentary. We invited them to India for covering the tea industry there and for investigating the travels of tea thru Sichuan, Tibet and Sikkim thru Kalimpong to reach great Indian plains.
Many tea documentaries are being made currently. Aditya Thayi is also currently visiting India after shooting his footage in China, Japan, Korea and Taiwan. He is in our contact for this, so are many more.
Li Hai Yang, this young pretty girl from Quanzhou is helping me streamline my thoughts about Fujian and Yunnan for my current travels there. A resident of Zhijiang near Hangzhou, she is going to be a nice organiser of this November 2007 trip.
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