| About Us - Registration/Login - Contact Us - Message Board - Glossary - Features - B-School - Legal - Biz-End - Orange-GTM - WAP |
| STOCK MARKETS | COMPANIES | SECTORS | ECONOMY | MUTUAL FUNDS | ONLINE TRADING | INVESTOR POINTS |
| |
|
| 'This site is a must read for investors ..' Forbes magazine | |
| India Infoline Sector Database | Wed, 18-Feb-2004 17:23:15 IST (GMT+5:30) | |
| Tea | ||
|
 |
Introduction Tea is the most popular non-intoxicating beverage in the world enjoyed by the rich and poor alike. Tea drinking was quite common in China as early as the 6th century B.C. Over a period of time this habit was picked up by neighbouring countries in South East Asia, such as Japan. Western nations started importing tea from China only in the 17th century. The British developed India as a sourcing base in the 19th century to reduce their dependence on China. During the late 19th century and early 20th century, tea cultivation became popular in other colonies like Sri Lanka, Tanzania, Malawi, Kenya, etc. In the last four decades, world production had a growth of 3% pa, which decelerated to 1.5% pa in the last decade. Plantation and processing Botanically, tea is a tree. For commercial farming, tea is grown as a bonsai, by repeated pruning and clipping. Tea bushes get ready for commercial plucking in 5 years and takes about 7 years to reach maturity. Tea bushes have a life span of over 100 years. Productivity is high in the first 30-50 years. The processing involves the crushing of leaves, which leads to controlled fermentation of the present liquor. The processed tea (referred to as "made tea" in the industry) is sold either loose or in packets. Types & quality Tea is distinguished as green or black based on apparent colour. While black tea is manufactured by deliberate fermentation of leaf juice, green tea is manufactured by preventing fermentation. Black tea has a stronger taste and liquor. Green tea is light and is perceived to have pharmaceutical properties. Black tea can be of two varieties: Leaf and dust. Leaf tea can also be processed as orthodox or CTC (Crush, Tear and Curl). CTC production entails accelerated fermentation. CTC gives higher cuppage (almost twice) for the same quantity of tea and has a stronger liquor, while orthodox tea is light and retains aroma. Tea quality is measured on the basis of liquor, aroma/ flavour and leaf appearance. Consumers perceive quality differences on the attributes of taste, pungency, strength, freshness, colour and packaging. Value Addition The most popular form of value addition is selling branded tea. This involves not only the packing of tea but also blending of other varieties to maintain consistency of taste. To arrive at a blend, expert tea tasters sample hundreds of liquors. Convenient drinks like instant tea (soluble tea powder), tea bags (bags are dipped in hot water), ready to drink (served in cans) and flavoured tea (with vanilla, strawberry flavour) are becoming popular in developed countries like the USA and Japan.
|
|
|
| 5PAISA | PREMIUM CONTENT | ADVERTISE WITH US | FEEDBACK | DISCLAIMER | PRIVACY POLICY | JOBS | FAQS | SITE MAP | HELP |
