Tea Culture and Its Importance to India

Origins of the Culture

Tea drinking in India first started (or was at least first documented), in 750 B.C. Tea is indigenous to the Northern and Eastern parts of India and has since grown exponentially, making India one of the largest growers and producers of tea in the world. The majority of tea is used within India itself, and since its use by Buddhist monks, has been utilized for thousands of years. Its use as a drink was started by local regions in the country using the wild native plants in their area. Since then, hundreds of varieties are developed and grown, with Darjeeling and Assam perhaps being the most popular worldwide. The world famous British East India Company started commercial production of tea in India and converted massive tracts of land to its production.

Development of the History

In the 16th century, a Dutch explorer noted that the people used the tea leaves a s a vegetable side dish, along with garlic and oil as well as boiling the leaves to make a drink from them. In the 1800s, people in Assam told a Calcutta publisher that the imported seeds of Chinese tea were now growing as plants in their area jungle. The British East India Company took over the cultivation in Assam and in 1837 they established the first English Tea Garden there. By the turn of the century this region in Assam became the leader in the entire world, for tea production

India and Tea in the 21st Century

India was recently surpassed by China (due to the vast acreage available there) as being the top producer of tea. India is the world's largest tea drinking country and they have acquired British brands Tetley and Typhoo. Per person, the average consumption is less than a cup but this is due to income level (low) and the large population. India does lead the world in most tea technology but the ways that the crop is harvested varies by the scope of the terrain and the variety of the tea. Small and fine-leaved teas are hand plucked, or shears are used if the slopes are mountainous. Low grade tea for teabags can be harvested by machines and the fine tea "lint" created when the tea is being processed is used as a caffeine source for medicines, soft drinks and other products. Through the centuries, tea has become integral to the Indian culture, economy and way of life. Take tea away, and you remove the essence of this vibrant and populous Asian country.

Susan Hart is a former literary agent, born in England, with the majority of her clients being screenwriters. After many years of helping others get their work published or up on the big or small screen, she is concentrating on her own writing in the areas of articles (of many kinds), short stories, novels and screenplays plus editing and proofreading, Some samples of her work can be found on her website at: http://www.ifreelance.com/pro/49442

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