One of the best things that has been said about Tea is that "Tea is Unpretentious".
To such a humble produce, questions are now being raised as to its safety...
And thats it then!
Some Planters do not spray anything at all, for the simple reason that they do not have money .. Strange as it may sound, it is sadly TRUE.
We end up buying Teas from reputed estates with big names who have production targets to meet and fluid budgets for pesticides. State ofthe art machinery to even turn coarse leaf into visibly good tea.On the other hand there are estates who do not even have money to pay wages. No money - No name - No demand - poor prices : the vicious cycle goes on and on. Endosulfan, Dicofol, Ethion, Paraquat Dichloride, Amine Salts, SodiumSalts, Synthetic pyrethroids, Fenazaquin, Glyphosate, Oxyflurofen,Chloropyrifos, Imidachlorpid ..... the list of chemicals goes on and on.Yet, the Tea Plantations are an example of the most intense and scientific form of cultivation. The plants survive in a very healthy state, and remain economically productive even beyond 100 years ofage. Usually pesticides are sprayed immediately after harvest, so that harvestable leaves do not receive the chemicals. Some chemicals aresystemic though, and in such cases, a harvesting holiday is given tothe Bushes, or alternatively, the following harvest is skiffed off /discarded. The Tea industry in India imposed a voulentary ban on theuse of Chlorinated Hydrocarbons way back in early 70's.
The bottom line is that, pesticide or no pesticide, TEA is by far theSAFEST drink to have.A word of caution though .... Avoid First Flush Teas. During themonths of dormancy, the bushes go through a lot of stress ... Frost,Drought, Aphids et al. So to sustain the plants, a lot of Pesticides +Muriate of Potash + Di Ammonium Phosphate + Sulphur is sprayed. Therebeing no harvest, the plant can not digest / metabolise thesechemicals. It all builds up .....
And another bottom line here is : Blended Teas are by far safer,compared to single estate teas, unless they are from a reliable source.
Tea Cheers!Jayesh S Pandya.
While your thoughts are noble, the fact remains that without effective certification process its difficult to get consumers to believe in these statements. Imports from China, under Organic label, have been found to be not so. Hence, its difficult to take any one's words at face value. I know this because we have lost many a customer because they were looking for Organic label, and we couldn't confirm the organic nature of the tea.
ReplyDeleteIf Organic label from USDA or European authorities is expensive to obtain, then Indian industry must develop its own standards and start policing themselves. Organic standards and labels are here to stay, so unless the small growers want to run out of business, they have to find a way to meet the customer expectations.
True of both, the article and Sunil's observation.
ReplyDeleteThe scenario of Dooars tea plantations is indeed sad, and if some respite can be drawn out of its sadness, and consumers take cognizance of its natural detoxification : it could come as a blessing in disguise!
Good Luck.
So, what teas are safe(-er,-est)? Mind-boggling...
ReplyDelete