Tea production is experiencing difficulties, but experts see chances for a resurrection. The fine quality of Nepali tea should be a strong card in the global market, and young Nepalis start sipping it as a trendy, tasteful beverage.
Tea arrived in Nepal in T1863, but it was not until the 1960s that tea became a mass-produced commodity, albeit initially on a small scale. An afternoon tea session is now a common tradition.
Tea shops have proliferated, particularly in urban areas. Entrepreneurs are capitalising on the trend with popular outlets like Chiya Adda, Chiya Sagar, Jugaad Chiya, and Kadak Chiya. Youngsters can be found sipping tea and engaging in conversations.
Tea can be categorised into loose-leaf or orthodox tea and CTC – Crush, Tear, and Curl. Loose-leaf tea is a blend of higher-quality tea leaves, whereas CTC tea is produced from lower-quality leaves. The latter is prevalent in South Asia, mainly for making ‘milk tea’, while CTC tea is more up-market.
Identity-building comes with a price.
Nearly all of Nepal’s tea goes to India, the fourth largest tea exporter in the world. Experts believe most of Nepal’s tea exports to India are sold as Indian tea to international markets.
“Nepali tea is as good, if not better, than Darjeeling tea. Why can we not have an identity of Nepali tea like French wines or Scottish whiskey?”
Amigo Khadka, co-founder of the Nepal Tea Collective.
”The Nepali tea industry is riddled with middlemen who buy tea from farmers cheaply and send it to buyers in India. Darjeeling tea is thriving worldwide as a brand. Nepali tea, on the contrary, has no standing in the world, and that is why Indian producers buy Nepali tea at a lower cost and sell it abroad to fulfil the high demand for Darjeeling and Assam in the marketplace,” says Amigo Khadka, a cofounder of the Nepal Tea Collective. “Nepali tea is as good, if not better, than Darjeeling. While Darjeeling is known as the champagne of tea, alluding to its quality and taste, Nepali tea is like an orphan in the world of beverages. Why can we not have a brand identity like French wines or Scottish whiskey?”
Efforts to elevate Nepali tea and improve its global quality perception have faced Indian opposition. In late 2021, India banned imports of Nepali tea, claiming that Nepal had supplied low-quality tea to India and misused the Darjeeling label. The ban was lifted in October 2022 after the Tea Board of India introduced a rule that Nepali tea can only be used in non-Darjeeling blends. It remains unclear if this rule is strictly enforced.
Without international acclaim, Nepal has no choice but to supply tea to India, which is then rebranded as Darjeeling or Assam Tea. It is high time that Nepal finds a way to break free from this cycle and ensure a distinct brand for its tea in the international market.
Challenging financial scenarios
While geo-identity—or ‘appellation’, as the French say—is essential, other issues must also be considered, especially the wages of tea farmers. They make around 80 per cent of the minimum monthly income in other industries if employed. Most tea harvesters, however, get payments based on the quantity of tea leaves they have plucked. A day’s earnings are generally less than four US dollars, and tea leaves are only gathered a few times a week. On top of that, there is no work for three months in the winter.
Tea farmers earn around 80 percent of the minimum monthly income in other industries. Their children see their parents’ struggles and do not want to live that life.
The children see their parents struggle. For many young people from tea families in Ilam, Panchthar, and Dhankuta—hilly districts of eastern Nepal—getting a job in South Korea is the way out. They spend their days learning Korean while working in a different industry. The future of tea plantations looks grim. Will the sector die because of the lack of a productive workforce, or will automation take over?
Comeback in upper-end cafes.
On the other hand, loose-leaf orthodox tea is making a resurgence in upper-end cafes in Kathmandu. Himalayan Java, a coffee chain, removed low-quality tea bags from its menu and started providing high-quality loose-leaf tea. While coffee sales are its bread and butter, tea sales have slowly started picking up. Nevertheless, the presence of loose-leaf tea in such a celebrated café shows a sign of a trickle-down possibility for high-quality Nepali tea to be consumed by the larger mass market.
Beyond loose-leaf tea, CTC tea is also gaining momentum. The introduction of youth-owned and youth-consumed tea spaces mentioned above is rebranding the beverage as something that can be enjoyed with friends in a restaurant-like ambience. The market now provides two choices: a cheap yet traditional CTC tea and an expensive and modern looseleaf tea.
It is high time that Nepal finds a way to break free from this cycle and ensure a distinct brand for its tea in the international market.
These shifts have indicated that Nepali tea can jump forward in the beverage ecosystem in the Nepali market and globally. The industry is riddled with problems, but with a staunch focus on the commodity by relevant stakeholders, including the government, producers, farmers, and marketers, Nepali tea can become extraordinary in kitchens and living rooms worldwide.
Ishan Mainali is a regular contributor to Nepal Connect.
