Issue link: http://read.dmtmag.com/i/491359
42 STiR tea & coffee industry international SOURCING TIPS Helpful advice from Warren Peltier, Yuantai Tea Co., in Fujian, China and Austin Hodge, a U.S. based importer who founded Seven Cups Fine Chinese Tea in Tucson, Ariz. Traveling to China and Taiwan is the best way to get the teas you want, the ones that are not available on the open market. Dealing with an international tea importer that regularly travels to China is the next best option, said Hodge. You get a lower price for the tea, comparable to what you would pay a Chinese wholesale company, along with the detailed harvest and produc- tion information you need to market and promote the tea effectively. Insist on manageable quantities, usually 30-50 kilos shipped directly from China. Carefully review the accompanying paperwork and taste the teas on arrival. The main weakness of China's domestic suppliers is that few companies have broken out of the regional mold, said Peltier. Some farm in different provinces: say in Fujian, Anhui, Zhejiang and Yunnnan, but in general tea companies tend to only focus on one type of tea. Most also follow the business model of grower/buyer-producer- retailer; rather than buyer-retailer. That further complicates the one tea variety sales problem. the Beijing Finance Channel. Exports were up 4.8% in 2013 to 150,000 metric tons of which 10,300 metric tons reached the U.S. The United States is China's second largest tea trading partner at 29,000 metric tons in 2011. Morocco imported 63,600 metric tons that same year with Russia, Ukraine and the CIS together accounting for 45,000 metric tons. The U.K. which was once China's largest export partner imports only 2,300 metric tons, less than France. "In order to enhance the competitiveness of Fujian tea export… the relevant en- terprises should establish a safe and reliable tea production base and traceability system to ensure that products meet the health indicators of pesticide residues in the import- ing country," reads the report which suggests "the introduction of a uniform health standards and pesticide residues in tea uniform pesticide detection methods as soon as possible, and guide the healthy and sustainable development." Domestic consumers are now seeking the same safeguards applied to exported tea. Last year a study by the China Tea Marketing Association found that 67% of Chi- nese consumers "would be more likely to purchase products or services from a com- pany with a good reputation for environmental responsibility." The survey showed 61% would buy sustainable tea and that 80% of those with a preference for sustainable tea would pay 10% more for the product," according to Zhu Zhonghai, who presented the study results at the 5th Global Dubai Tea Forum in April. Zhonghai represents the China Tea Marketing Association which assembled a Sustainable Development Work- ing Group in October 2010. The study is an outgrowth of that work. Mao Limin, chairman of the Tea Industry Chamber of Commerce and managing director at Zhejiang Tea Group Co., reports that in 2012 3 million acres (1.26 million ha) of tea is grown pesticide free on organic certified land. However, the marketing association study indicates only 26% of tea consumers trust current certification systems. Sourcing Chinese tea The fact that the market is fractured makes it difficult for buyers to source quality tea. The world's largest retailers and wholesalers trade with China's long-established provincial export companies which in turn buy from thousands of growers. Smaller importers find themselves dealing with a single native Chinese English-speaking sales and marketing director traveling to trade shows, sending emails and countless samples and making calls in a valiant effort to connect with shop owners around the globe. Until 2006, when the government abandoned its system of quotas and licensing restrictions only 400 companies in China were allowed to export tea. Only three sold more than 20 million kilos of tea overseas in 2011, while 260 sold less than 100,000 kg, according to China Daily. Tea is now exported through 70,000 trading ventures, many engaged in a price war, expending valuable energy that they could otherwise have harnessed in promoting the product, Cai Jun explained. "The problem for today's private enterprises is that they don't have enough money to undertake promotions overseas," said Jun. Anji Bai Cha is an example of a third path. As demand soared, cultivars from the hybrids produce good quality white tea such as Changxing white tea (a county neighboring Anji), Ningbo (of Zhejiang province) white tea, Liyang (of Jiangsu province) white tea and Jiangxi white tea. To preserve its identity the co-operatives that produce Anji Bai Cha harvest on land recognized by its Geographical Indication (GI) a designation by the International Committee for the Promotion of Chinese Industrial Cooperatives (ICCIC). These co- ops are well-financed ventures that plant thousands of acres of tea and run factories that serve large groups of growers. A 2007 law permits individual ownership of up to 40% of the shares within the co-operative. By 2009 there were 250,000 agricultural co-operatives operating in China, governed by 21 million households. There are 5,800 Anji white-leaf tea growers and 350 Anji white tea factories in the county, according to Xu Fei. In the cities there are Anji Bai Cha retailers. Many Anji growers and factories have organized themselves into co-operatives for uniform development. The largest co-operative has more than 350 Anji Bai Cha growers sup- plying 200 factories. There is also a women's co-operative dedicated to helping female growers and small producers. Entrepreneurial by design, Anji Bai Cha is marketed as a brand. There is a research and product development staff, packaging and shipping prowess and the ability to em-