Tuesday, 21st October 2014
Ishara Jayawardane
“There is no trouble so great or grave that cannot be much diminished by a nice cup of tea.” - Bernard Paul Heroux
“If you are cold, tea will warm you. If you are too heated, it will cool you. If you are depressed, it will cheer you. If you are excited, it will calm you.” - Gladstone (1865)
Tea is mixed with many types of dried fruits and herbs to give flavour, aroma and other health benefits. Many hotels offer green tea infused with different types of flowers in it for aroma and taste. Tea has for a long time been the pride of Sri Lanka. It has a unique taste and quenches the thirst on a particularly hot and demanding day.
High productivity
“I have made a smoothie including tea, blue berries, strawberries and ice cream! It turned out to be an awesome drink! I have tried 10 flavours of iced tea, almost all the tea flavours on the planet. I have also mixed hot chocolate and tea together while I was away on business and it turned out to be an awesome drink. I love peaches and lemon in tea, usually I put a slice of lime to my cup of tea - peach and lemon are my favorite iced tea flavours as well.” said Deshaka Perera, a committed tea lover. To go in depth about the value and the status of the tea industry, the Daily News spoke to Chairman of the Tea Research Board, Dr. S S B D Gerry Jayawardena. Tea is gaining more popularity because it is not only a beverage but also a health drink. Emphasizing the medicinal value of tea he said, “Tea is historically known as a health drink from the time of Emperor Shen Nung in 2737 BC. Research done in Sri Lanka and in many countries have proved health benefits of tea as it possesses medicinal properties known to reduce cardio vascular diseases, blood pressure, diabetes. Tea contains high quantities of anti-oxidants.”
Tea was first introduced to Ceylon in 1824, and again in 1839, for experimental purposes. A few seeds from China and north-east India (Assam) were planted at the Royal Botanical Gardens in Peradeniya and allowed to grow freely. “Many years later, in the 1860s, the commercial planting of tea was tried out by James Taylor, a Scottish planter, at Loolecondera Estate, Hewaheta in the Kandy District. Taylor’s tea gradually expanded to cover an extent of 100 acres. The first commercially viable tea was manufactured by Taylor in 1867.
At a time when the coffee industry was on the decline, owing to the ravages of the coffee rust disease, coffee planters were able to transform Taylor’s few acres into the beginnings of a new industry. By 1875, an extent of 10,000 acres of tea was already flourishing and by 1885, the extent had increased to 48,800 acres. By 1900, Ceylon tea had come to occupy a special place amongst the tea drinkers of the world.”
Asked about the present status of the industry and the major challenges it faces today, Dr. Jayawardena said, “The tea industry today is at its peak in performance as in 2013 Sri Lanka recorded a historical highest ever annual production of 340 million kilograms. In spite of the fact that Sri Lanka has come next to Kenya in its tea production, Sri Lanka yet remains the World No. 1 orthodox tea exporter and record the highest price per kilo of made tea in world tea auctions. During the last three decades new tea producing countries like Vietnam and Africa have increased their tea production producing at a lower cost of production.
Therefore, the biggest challenge today is the price competitiveness in the world market, as our COP (Cost of production) is the highest due to low productivity and high cost of labour and inputs including the cost of energy. Productivity too is low as our tea soils are depleted due to continuous cultivation over a century. Farmers are being educated of research findings to improve soil to sustain high productivity.
No problem
The other challenge is to retain workers in the industry as there is a migration of estate workers to other employment opportunities. In order to arrest this situation the government has introduced a project to popularize the use of mechanical devices.
Another challenge that tea producers have to be mindful of is the fact that tea consuming countries like the USA and Japan demand a healthy product with minimum chemical residues. The Tea Research Institute of Sri Lanka (TRISL) has done research on this to disseminate knowledge on food safety standards.”
It appears that the Sri Lankan tea industry can weather any storm brewing in its cup of tea. The TRISL is the brains behind the brawn.
Asked about the importance of research in sustaining the industry, Dr. Jayawardena remarked, “TRISL is the world’s second oldest research Institute established in 1925. Economic and Agronomic sustainability of the tea industry is primarily due to research knowledge and technology generated by the Research Institute. All cultivars grown by the industry are produced by TRISL.
The TRISL has constantly transferred all technological findings to growers. We also have to be mindful of the impact of climate change on tea cultivation. The TRISL has taken this challenge as a high priority area and has done research over the last couple of years and has advised on climate change impact mitigating strategies.”
As an export item, tea brings an annual revenue of US $ 2.5 billion, and as such the export of tea remains a vital component in Sri Lanka’s economy.
“The Ministry of Plantation Industries has prepared many strategies to face stiff competition by promoting the Lion Logo and Ceylon Tea. Based on its historical reputation as the cleanest tea in the world, “Ceylon Tea” has wide popularity all over the world.
Sri Lanka primarily exports black orthodox tea in bulk as well as in value added form where 55-60% is exported as bulk tea while 40% is in value added form. We also export flavoured tea as value added tea. Sri Lanka also exports about 1 million kilos of green tea.
The world Tea market is expanding at a rate slightly higher than the world production. Sri Lanka has no problem in marketing all the tea produced in the country.” said Dr. Jayawardena confidently.
Daily News brewed some opinions on tea from tea lovers!
“I have once made myself a cocktail with iced tea in it - am not sure whether I remember how the day ended. The first thing that comes to my mind is refreshing when someone says TEA!!! Besides the alcohol, I would like lime and or apple in it. I have lived in Singapore for a short while, and I totally loved the iced tea (flavoured) as a cooler on a hot day! I used to buy it by the liter and have it. I think there should be better marketing to promote iced tea instead of carbonated drinks in Sri Lanka,” said Jayalakshan Srinivasan.
“Believe me tea and coffee with milk is also nice. I think you need to drink tea without sugar, sugar kills the flavour of your cup of tea. It is difficult if you are not used to have it without sugar, but you get used to it after some time. I generally like it strong but depends on the brand and taste, some tea are better when they are light. Eg: green tea.
Tea is refreshing than coffee. I love the flavour and aroma. Tea provides as many disease-fighting flavonoids and a high amount of antioxidant. It makes you feel strong and lively.
I love iced tea on a hot afternoon. It will make you feel awesome. Buying a bottle of iced tea on the go is a good option than having soda. I think iced tea is picking momentum, the types of flavours on offer are great,” said Deshaka Perera.
“Iced tea is getting quite popular in Sri Lanka, I have noticed many people would rather enjoy a glass of iced tea with their choice of flavour. Green tea has many health benefits and now Sri Lankans are focusing a lot on their health by having green tea, and yes it is popular.
Hotels are serving green tea because many of their clients prefer having green due to awareness of the many health benefits green tea has to offer, before it would be only served in Chinese restaurants, but now you will find many hotels offer it.
Tea has flavonoids which help strengthen the immune system, and I would rate tea as a very healthy beverage. The younger generation is now very concerned about health and there are youngsters who definitely choose tea as their healthy beverage over a soda.
I really would not brand tea as a local drink, tea is and has been a growing market. The demand for tea in the European sector is growing rapidly. Many Europeans are turning to tea nowadays due the various types of tea which one can offer.
Many people drink coffee because it has caffeine in it and it is a stimulant, and studies have shown a few health benefits, whereas tea has so many health benefits and it is packed with antioxidants like flavonoids, Catechins and tannins which are important in fighting germs,” said Managing Director, Master Tasters PVT LTD, a tea exporting company, Prashan D Vethakan.
From : http://www.dailynews.lk/?q=features/tea
