The Top Tea Growing Countries of the World
The largest producers of tea are India, Sri Lanka and China. There are, however, many other parts of the world now growing and producing tea including, you may be surprised to hear, countries as far apart as Russia and Argentina.
It may also be hard to believe, but England also produces its very own tea. The Tregothnan Estate near Truro in Cornwall has been a commercial tea growing estate since 2005 and now actually sells its finished product to – amongst other places – China! The wet climate of south west England is idea for the tea plant.
Still, the top ten tea producing nations of the world, based on 2008 figures are:
10TH – IRAN Iran did not build its first tea processing plant until the 1930’s, despite being a heavy consumer of the beverage. This has expanded to more than a hundred near the settlement of Lahijan.
Iranian tea production is mostly of high quality black teas, however the tea industry has recently hit trouble due to plantation and factory owners being able to earn more money by building and selling houses on their land. Production figures in 2008 were 59,000 tonnes
9TH – ARGENTINA Argentina is best known for its production of Mate tea – which is not a true tea (from the camellia sinensis plant), but from the holly like yerba mate plant. Nevertheless true tea production – generally black tea – from northern Argentina, was in the region of 70,000 tonnes in 2008.
8TH – JAPAN The Japanese people love tea and are the world’s fourth largest consumers. An excellent quality green tea is the main product with over 90,000 tonnes being produced in 2008, however the export of Japanese tea has dwindled over the past few decades due to the high costs of land and labor.
7TH – INDONESIA Tea has been part of the Indonesian way of life for over 200 years, with Java and Sumatra being two of the main growing areas. The Indonesian tea estates were in very poor condition after WW2, with abandoned factories and tea plantations that had reverted to their wild state. Thanks to heavy investment in the 1980’s, exports from Indonesia began to expand.
Today, old estates have been replanted and large investments made in machinery. Teas from Indonesia are light and subtle flavored, and are most often being sold for blending purposes. More than 150,000 tonnes of tea production was recorded in 2008.
6TH – VIETNAM Much like its coffee counterpart, tea from Vietnam is produced for quantity rather than quality. Most of the tea exported is black and used in blended teas. There is, however, a rich culture of green tea drinking within the country and their green teas are of a high standard. More than 170,000 tonnes of tea was produced in 2008 by Vietnam.
5TH – TURKEY Turkey was one of the first countries in the world to use tea as a cultural beverage, and today it is as important a way of life as ever. Black Turkish tea is produced mainly on the eastern coast, which has a mild, wet climate with fertile soil.
Within the country, this tea is usually known as Rize tea as virtually all of it is produced in the Rize province, on the Black Sea coast. The total tea produced in 2008 by Turkey was 200,000 tonnes.
4TH – SRI LANKA Under its former name of Ceylon, Sri Lanka used to be the world’s biggest exporter of black teas. Tea from Sri Lanka falls into three categories: low-grown, medium grown, and high grown (this refers to the height above sea level and not the bush sizes). Each category produces teas of unique character and by blending from different areas of the island, Sri Lanka produces teas of a very wide range of flavor and color.
Because of its unique geographical location, tea can be harvested in Sri Lanka all year round, as the west and east of the island are divided by central mountains and as one region’s season ends, the other begins. Tea production is still a major part of the economy of Sri Lanka and in 2008 over 300000 tonnes were produced.3RD – KENYA As one of Africa’s oldest tea producers, Kenya’s history of tea production dates back over 100 years, when it began by using plants obtained from India. Today, due to the ideal climate, tea – mainly black – is grown and harvested all year round.
Some of the major British tea brands use Kenyan tea. Together with coffee, tea is the major foreign exchange earner in Kenya, and the total recorded amount of tea produced in 2008 was more than 340,000 tonnes.
2ND – INDIA India is the biggest exporter of black tea and the second most prolific grower in the world overall. The two most well known and main growing areas are Darjeeling and Assam. Teas from Darjeeling, grown among the Himalayan foothills, are known as the ‘Champagne’ of teas for their wonderful delicate and distinctive flavor, while the more robust Assam’s are favored for their ‘afternoon tea’ quality.
Indian teas are produced all over the country and while they are mainly black, some excellent quality green teas are also to be found. The total amount of tea produced in India in 2008 was over 800,000 tonnes.
1ST – CHINA The place where it all began, the original and only producer for hundreds of years. China drinks a lot of its own tea, but still manages to export one fifth of the world market. While mainly known for its Green Teas, China produces five other principal types for which the country is equally famous: Black, White, Oolong, Pu’erh and Lapsang.
Lapsang teas get their distinctive taste by smoking over pine needles. In China, tea production occurs on large automated commercial area as well as on small traditional plantations. The total tea produced in China in 2008 was more than 1,250,000 tonnes.
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