Lipton's Dubai unit to become world's biggest
The Dubai unit of Lipton, operated by Unilever, is set to become the biggest tea production facility in the world. Benefiting from Dubai's tax free zone and strategic location between tea producing and consuming countries, Lipton Jebel Ali Factory produces the equivalent of 2 million cups of tea an hour, or almost 20 billion a year. Production volume grew by 50% over the last five years, from 22,000 tons in 2009 to 33,000 tons at the end of 2014, making it the biggest branded tea facility in the world. The factory sources its tea from 15 different countries, with the biggest suppliers being Kenya, India and Vietnam, and exports to 50 different countries.