India seeks to increase quality and output to meet rising demand
The Indian tea industry is making a push to improve the quality and output of its tea crop in order to meet rising demand. The Tea Board of India has set aside almost $3 million for research and development projects, which include funding for the development of weather resistant tea clones. This is in response to changing weather patterns that have brought warmer weather and decreased rainfall in parts of the country. India will invest a further $6 million to replant aging bushes in a bid to increase annual production that has been stagnating at around 980 million kilograms for the past two years. Aging bushes is the biggest concern for tea producers, because yields decrease significantly with age. For example, in Darjeeling, 75 percent of tea bushes are between 50 and 100 years old. Finally, funding will also be made available to improve the welfare of tea estate workers and clamp down on low quality re-exports that tarnish the reputation of Indian tea abroad.