Tea Producing CountriesAlthough tea is now consumed in most part of the world, it is still grown and processed primarily in the East.
In 2003, world tea production reached 3.15 million tons, a 75,000 ton increase over 2002.
The principle tea producing countries are China, India, Japan, Sri Lanka, and Argentina.
Many producing countries the improvement of productivity has become a more significant factor for gains in prediction than increased area.
As tea often has to compete with other food and export crops for available land, there is an evident need to make optimum used of the limited land available.
Higher output has to be obtained predominantly through improved yields, which are mainly achieved through rehabilitation of old tea lands and in filling with the best available planting material.
Tea is grown in more than thirty countries. Globally, some 2.3 million hectares are planted to tea, and production from this area was approximately 3.0 million metric tons in 1997.
Many of the producing nations consume very little of the product while other countries import large quantities for domestic consumption.
Some countries, like the United Kingdom and the Netherlands, also import tea for value addition and re-export. Tea is an important beverage in certain Western countries like the United Kingdom, the United States, Germany, the Netherlands and Canada.
Tea geographical separation of principle production and consumption areas provides the greatest potential for future trading.
Tea Producing Countries
