Demand for green tea is growing at a
rate of 17 per cent per annum against only 3
per cent for black tea in the domestic market,
a Tea Board official said on
Friday. Assam produced 2 million kg of green tea of the estimated production of
11 million kg in the country during 2013, Tea Board Executive Director
(Incharge) Dipankar Mukherjee said while inaugurating a workshop on Green Tea
in Golaghat, Assam.
India is the largest
producer and consumer of black tea in the world while China
is the largest producer and consumer of green tea in the world. "The demand for green tea is rapidly
increasing in India whereas in China, the demand for black tea is on the
rise," he said emphasising the need for scientific and sustained
production of green tea. The workshop
was organised by the North Eastern Tea
Association (NETA) in association with PARCON (India) Private Limited and
supported by the Tea Board.
More than 100 tea planters from Assam,
Nagaland and Arunachal Pradesh along with several small tea growers
participated in the workshop. The
workshop discussed various issues including the manufacture of green tea, its
market prospects in India and machinery available for production. Local entrepreneurs shared their experiences
of producing hand-made green tea, organic tea and tea processing machinery.
Green tea is made from the leaves from Camellia sinensis that have undergone
minimal oxidation during processing. Green
tea originated in China, but it has become associated with many cultures
throughout Asia. Green tea has recently become more widespread in the West,
where black tea has been the traditionally consumed tea. Green tea has become
the raw material for extracts used in various beverages, health foods, dietary
supplements, and cosmetic items. Many varieties of green tea have been created
in the countries where it is grown. These varieties can differ substantially
due to variable growing conditions, horticulture, production processing, and
harvesting time.
