STiR coffee and tea magazine

28 STiR coffee and tea | 2024 Issue 6 (December / January 2025) El Bosque Confiteria (tea and confectionery) in Villa Giardino, Cordoba. Tea drinking is gaining popularity out-of-home as conducive to calm reflection. Photo by Andres Conema Declining Value of Argentine Tea Exports (2019-2023) United States Poland Peru Germany Chile Russian Uruguay United Brazil Malaysia of America Federation Kingdom Sources: ITC calculations based on Instituto Nacional de Estadistica y Censos statistics. Exported growth in value between 2019 and 2023, % 0 -20 -40 -60 -80 Trade with buyers in some countries has declined 20%, 40%, and even 60% since 2019. are used in making tea extracts.* He also embraces cultivating gourmet teas, working with Argentinian specialty tea maker Adriana Yañez, who founded Akasha Tea. Newell expressed similar concerns about export market dependency. "Argenti- na's tea export market heavily depends on a few key countries, particularly the United States. A shift in demand or trade policies in these countries could negatively affect Argentina's tea exports," he said. Quality Perception and Value Addition Low-cost bulk tea has limited appeal in high-value markets. Few Argentine brands market directly to consumers on- line, and domestic demand for premium tea grown locally is low, discouraging market diversification. Innovation requires high investments with little income security but innovation is also very important, writes Swier. "The organic tea niche is a very interesting exam- ple, but the final price does not cover the increased costs of its production," he said. Export markets are pressuring grow- ers to adopt eco-friendly practices veri- fied by third-party certifiers. Compliance requires investment in technology and processes beyond smallholders' financial resources. Swier writes that "certification in- creases costs and is not properly re- warded. The percentage of certified plantations is already significant. The percentage that does not certify is left out of the export market." "The industry has come a long way, it all requires investment, with a higher cost of production, to meet the different requirements for each certifying entity," says Newell. "The manufacturers see

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