Issue link: https://read.dmtmag.com/i/1483499
STiR coffee and tea 27 www.hertz-selck.com We are fl avour composers and scientists, developing customised premium fl avours for the tea industries. Creativity and passion are in our DNA, as our 90-year tradition and unique fl avour expertise – Made in Germany. We deliver complete concepts, from the idea to the end product. Contact us for more information: info@hertz-selck.com WE FLAVOUR THE WORLD GI is intended to protect the status of products that have esteemed charac- teristics, production methods, and qual- ity found only in their specific place of origin, whether it's a country, territory, or locality. Darjeeling tea joined other leg- endarily great goods like Colombian cof- fee, Bordeaux wine, Tequila, Swiss-made watches, and so on. If you've got it, make the most of it. Darjeeling should heavily promote GI status to claim its place and set commen- surate prices to sustain itself. It's important to protect the integrity of Darjeeling tea by enforcing GI. But sometimes rules backfire, as seen this year in October, when the Tea Board of India had to revise its 2021 notification that teas protected under GI (Darjeeling, As- sam Orthodox, Nilgiri Orthodox, Kangra) cannot be blended with imported tea. The rule had to be revised follow- ing weeks of poor sales. Tata Consumer Products Ltd., (TCPL) shunned the auc- tions following the notification. Tata previously bought an estimated 1 million kilograms of Darjeeling tea every year; their Tata Tea Gold is a Darjeeling blend. Following revision of the rule, blending will be allowed, but only pure Darjeeling product will be allowed to display the of- ficial GI logo. The lesson may be that since rules and enforcement can be tricky, it's pos- sible that a bigger benefit may come from focusing on revival of the brand itself, promoting its reputation as an exception- al tea and proclaiming its rich heritage. Make consumers your ally in protecting the origin. Production In 2014, Darjeeling's production was 8.51 million kilograms, of which 3.98 million kilograms was exported. In 2020, it was 6.7 million kilograms, with 3.1 mil- lion kilograms exported. In 2021, pro- duction fell to a new low of 6.19 million kilograms. The aging of tea bushes across Dar- jeeling is a major reason for the decline. Climate change is also a factor. Dry win- ters, unseasonable rain, and drought oc- cur without warning, lowering yields. Rishi Saria of Gopaldhara Tea Estate and Rohini Tea Estate says, "In 2004, Go- paldhara was producing 85,000 kilos on average. The average production of the last five years has been around 63,000 kilos." Selim Hill Tea Estate has gone organic and rents out a heritage bungalow to tea tourists. Courtesy Selim Hill Tea Estate