STiR coffee and tea magazine

26 STiR coffee and tea | 2024 Issue 6 (December / January 2025) E By Dan Bolton Diversifying Argentina's Tea Bounty fficient and expensive mechanical harvesters that collect tons of tea leaves in a single pass signal that the 2025 harvest is underway in Argentina, the southern- most tea-growing region in the world. According to UN Comtrade, Argentina ranked tenth in tea export value in 2022-23, reporting $72.4 million in revenue. Due to dry weather, export value declined by 10.6% to $58.5 million the following year. Margins tightened, but unlike most tea-producing countries, Argentina carefully balances the tea it supplies with market demand. Pedro Newell, who manages sales at Don Basilio Tea, told attendees at the North American Tea Conference (NATC) in September that compared to previous years, 2023-24 brought good weather, yielding such good volume that growers finished early and parked their equipment mid-season. "Fortunately, for some years now, Argentina tea producers have harvested only what they have sold rather than stocking up, as with some other origins," Newell ex- plained. He said many manufacturers closed their factories early in 2024 after meeting contract minimums. For decades, Argentina has produced approximately 70,000 to 90,000 metric tons of tea annually. Consistency in Argentina's bulk tea and extract export volumes is mainly due to a transactional business model based on direct sales to quantity buyers, including Van Rees North America, Unilever (now Lipton Teas & Infusions), Finlays, and Southern Tea. The tea fields at Camellias Tea Plantation in Campo Viera, near Oberá in Misiones. The farm is operated by the fourth-generation descendants of Russian emigrant Basilio Okulovich, who planted tea there in 1935. Argentina, one of the top ten tea-producing countries, must adapt its export strategy to broaden its appeal and diversify trade beyond supplying the US with cheap bulk tea for ice tea blends and extracts. US buyers ordered 45,000 metric tons of tea valued at $53.3 million last year at an average unit price of $1.19 per kilo. In 1970, the US imported 1.3 million kilos of Argentine tea at an average unit price of 45 cents per kilo. Exports grew to 50 million kilos in 2000, earning farm- ers $27.3 million before volume peaked in 2012 at $65 million in revenue, a sum which has steadily declined for the past decade. Despite fluctuations in price, Ar- gentina has remained the most significant player in meeting the unique demands of US iced tea blenders. The low polyphenol content of Ar- gentine cultivars makes them ideal for brewing iced tea. Oxidation is carefully controlled during processing to further reduce the concentration of tannins, which bind with caffeine to form aggre- gates that precipitate as they cool, cloud- ing the tea. The relatively high temperatures and rainfall in Northeastern Argentina con- tribute to the optimal growth of leaves. Care is taken to minimize volatile aro- matic compounds and minerals such as calcium and amino acids, which contrib- ute to color, flavor, and astringency (and are responsible for tea's health benefits). The Alberdi and La Novena tea processing facilities, where Don Basilio tea is made, were constructed in the 1950s. Several redesigns, refurbishments, and mechani- zation have increased the annual capacity to 15 million kilos of orthodox tea, up to 150 metric tons of tea daily. Photo courtesy Pedro and Miguel Newell at Don Basilio.

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