STiR coffee and tea magazine

36 STiR coffee and tea / Issue 4, 2018 (August / September) P oll a group of young people on their dream jobs, and you'll be unlikely to find many aspiring tea harvesters. This spells trouble for a certain valley in South Korea, where organic, pre- mium quality tea making has been the region's lifeblood for a millennium. On the slopes of Jiri Mountain, artisan tea makers passed down their trade like sword makers in medieval Japan. But the current generation is more interested in careers in the city than toiling in the tea fields. Many of the valley's youth are moving to urban centers and air-conditioned sky scrapers, leaving a gap in the valley's workforce and putting the region's future at risk. And yet with sales in organic tea rising around the globe, this eager generation might be leaving at just the wrong time. Health conscious consumers are making a return to tea, and driving growth for consumption in Korea and abroad. According to MarketWatch, global tea markets are set to hit $21.33 billion in 2024, up from $14.45 billion in 2016, showing a combined annual growth rate (CAGR) of 5%. At the forefront of this growth are premium ready- to-drink (RTD) products, offering consumers a solution to busy but health-conscious lifestyles. And according to Karin Gerlach, director of marketing at Tea of a Kind, consumers are becoming not only more health-conscious but also more eco-conscious, showing interest in sustainably sourced products. With a rising interest in organic, sus- tainable sources like Jiri Mountain, growers who stick to the trade may find themselves at the center of high demand. "Do you see any livestock here? There are no cows, no pigs, no chickens farmed in the valley. This is the cleanest valley in Korea," says Jong-gyun Kim, c.e.o. of Dong Cheon Tea, explaining what makes Hadong such a mecca for premium hand-made tea. With no livestock in the valley and a ban on pesticides, this is organic farming at its purest. And this is exactly what a new breed of tea drinkers are looking for. In 2016 Pep- siCo responded to market demand for more organic products by releasing their Pure Leaf Tea House Collection. Coca-Cola has had success with their own organic prod- ucts after acquiring Honest Tea. Brands like ITO EN Tea are finding the switch to certified organic crucial to their image as a premium brand. Tea drinkers have spoken, and with both loose leaf and RTD, organic is in demand. By Josh Doyle South Korea's artisan tea makers are losing their youth to big city dreams – but with a global rise in organic tea sales, Jiri Mountain's organic tea could become more sought- after than ever. Where Have All the Tea Makers Gone? A traditional tea ceremony performed at the Hadong Tea Museum. Hadong is the site of Korea's first tea bushes, and home to Korea's top tea artisans. Page Tea fields on the slopes of Jiri Mountain, where tea makers have passed down their craft for generations.

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