India's tea trade goes digital
India's tea auctions are switching to digital trading in an initiative by India's Tea Board to modernize the industry and counter slumping tea prices. It sees it as a bold move to achieve higher volumes and help planters who have been hit hard by plummeting value of tea, since electronic trading is expected to ensure fairer prices and lower transaction costs. Such a platform also reduces the need to rely on brokers on the ground, enabling direct trade between plantations and buyers. As a result, companies like Tata Tea and Unilever, who collectively control nearly half of the market, are said to benefit from better purchasing coordination and savings on labor costs.