For some years now, the system of cultivation and production of tea in Darjeeling, the area of India which gives its name to a well-known variety of tea, has overlapped with a series of problems which, as told by theEconomistcould endanger their survival. The Darjeeling region faces competition from neighboring Nepal and has a rather turbulent internal political situation. Furthermore, the consequences of climate change are endangering crops.
Darjeeling is known for what we commonly call “Darjeeling tea”: it is a fragrant and aromatic tea that is particularly valuable and sought after. With the leaves harvested in the Darjeeling plantations, black, green or white teas can be produced: the black ones are the most common, the white ones the most valuable and expensive. Tea plantations in Darjeeling have existed since the 1800s: they were established under the British Empire, and then sold to the Indian government when the country gained independence.
The Tea Board of India, the Indian government agency that regulates the cultivation, production and trade of tea, predicts that to be classified as “Darjeeling” a tea must have been grown and harvested in one of the 87 plantations of Darjeeling registered with the agency, processed in a plant in the same region and characterized by the particular aroma for which it is known, which varies according to the type of tea produced (black, green or white), but which can generally be defined as fruity and vaguely spicy (the procedure is verified by some expert tasters).
Of the 87 tea plantations in Darjeeling, about half today risk bankruptcy, and the others are generally losing money: for this reason, the Tea Board of India has recently asked the Indian government for an intervention of around 100 million euros to be distributed on a five-year period to avoid abandonment of plantations.
The Darjeeling tea industry has been in crisis for several years, but the situation has worsened lately mainly for two reasons. The first concerns the competition of tea grown in Nepal, the second, climate change.
The tea of Nepal has similar characteristics to that of Darjeeling, also thanks to the similar climatic conditions, but it is much less expensive (also because its production is subject to fewer rules). Nepalese tea is often sold as Darjeeling tea, even though it does not qualify for it: it is imported into India or exported abroad, with large losses for certified plantations and factories.
The problem of competition with Nepal arose above all after 2017, when much of the production in Darjeeling was suspended following the protests of the Gorkhas, an ethnic group that has long been calling for independence. Many of the buyers then looked for alternatives, finding them in the tea sold from Nepal.
To solve the problem of Nepalese tea being passed off as Darjeeling tea, the Indian government is considering introducing some border checks at the border to ensure that packets of tea labeled as being from Darjeeling really are. On the other hand, India does not even want to compromise the free trade agreement currently in force with Nepal, which is advantageous from other points of view, both economic and political.
Once sold, Darjeeling tea has a kind of PGI (Protected Geographical Indication) certification: to try to protect the brand, the Indian government had also attempted to introduce a ban on mixing it with other types of buyers who would have resold it of you. After the introduction of this rule Darjeeling tea purchases had drastically decreased, resulting in a price collapse. Last October, the Tea Board of India lifted the ban.
Added to all this are the effects of climate change. Darjeeling tea owes its characteristic taste to a combination of climatic factors, also favored by the altitude of the plantations and the quality of the soil. The rise in temperatures and the increase in drought shortened the harvest period by about a month, and consequently also led to a decrease in sales. Crops are made even more unpredictable by the frequency with which extraordinary weather events, such as heavy hail or monsoons, can occur, and rising temperatures can also favor the spread of insect infestations.
According to the data cited by theEconomist of the Indian Tea Association, a trade association of Indian tea producers, the current average yield per hectare of plantations in Darjeeling is 350 kilos of tea, up from 542 kilos in 2000.
