Supply chain behind your hot cup of tea!

Hello everyone, I am Nikitha - A final year MBA student from Amrita School Of Business majoring in Operations and Marketing. I am back with my blog , speaking about the manufacturing and supply chain behind the mighty hot drink of the world "tea" . I would suggest everyone to grab a cup of tea while reading this blog, just to make you feel connected to what I am try to explain. 

Have any of you wondered before drinking this universal drink, how it reaches in those fancy boxes that you pick up from supermarket shelves? How a plant is converted into dark brown powder, once boiled gives this amazing aroma and immense satisfaction once you sip it!

Well, I am going to take you through the process of making and the details of supply chain of tea, so the next time you drink it, you will have an idea of journey this tea powder has travelled to reach your cup.

This amazing invention was created in the early 20^th century by Thomas Sullivan from New York, when he sent out tea samples in silk bags to be emptied into teapots. Looking at the history of tea it is clear: tea originates from Asia. In fact, China was the motherland of tea and used to be the main world tea supplier until India overtook that role in the 19^th century. But China still plays a role in tea production, as does Japan, Sri Lanka and other Asian and African countries. Tea was not introduced into England until mid-17^th century. For a country known for their tea drinking habits, we were late to the tea party.

The process:

The supply chain process of tea leaves has 8 stages of production: growing, picking, withering, rolling, fermenting, drying, blending and packing. The whole supply chain is then developed further with transportation and retailers to help provide customers worldwide with this essential product.

From the soil to 1.2 m high plants

The journey used to begin with the Camellia sinensis seeds being re-planted in regions with hot and humid climates, on average of 18 to 20 degrees Celsius, with regular rainfall throughout the year. However, these days, selected plant cuttings are used and replanted on nursery beds for approximately 12 to18 months. The next step is transferring these young plants to the main plantation for them to mature into fully grown bushes. Every two years, farmers shape the crops, so they reach their full growth potential of 1.20m. After four years, the tea plants can be plucked manually. For an excellent quality harvest, the workers use the fine plucking method, whereby the bud and the following two leaves are picked. The workforce can pick up to 21 kilograms of tea per person, per day. More than 200 cups of tea can be brewed from approximately 450 grams of tea leaves.

Plants to tea bag/powder

After the picking stage is complete, the leaves are weighed and transported to the tea factory. They must be distributed to the factory quickly; within approximately 5 to 7 hours after harvest to prevent loss of quality. With this, the transformation process of the tea bag begins. It starts with withering; this requires leaves to be spread out in warm air, where they can shrivel up to a soft texture making it easier to roll without splitting the leaf.

The CTC (Cut, Tear and Curl technique) is commonly used to produce black tea, making the brew quicker and stronger, which is perfect for a tea bag. This involves a machine rolling the leaves at various speeds, and in turn, they are broken and torn into very small pieces.

The next step is fermentation to avoid natural decomposition. In this section of the supply chain, the leaves turn black as they dry out. For different types of tea, the leaves change colour while drying out, resulting in various flavours. The aim is for the final product to have levels of moisture between 2.5 – 3%.

Trading of tea takes place between producers and buyers through auctions, whereby tea companies, also known as packers and blenders, buy tea in packets with the assistance of brokers. Although the processed tea can be sold as a finished product, blending takes place to add extra value to the tea. In this phase, processed tea from smallholders is mixed with higher quality tea from large tea estates, then the beverage is exported.

       

Last step, tea in our cups:

After all this preparation, the tea is set for retail. The transportation and exportation throughout the various supply chain stages are crucial factors in the tea industry. They are heavily relied upon for their timings to deliver the highest quality tea to the end consumer, whether that is cafes or large supermarkets for home purposes. The tea leaves make several pit stops along the way before reaching consumers: from the plantation to the factory, and from the auction houses to the blending stations.

                                                    

I hope I was successful in explaining the process of how tea is reaching your cups, it is a long journey tea needs to travel to become a cup of awesomeness in our hands.

Thank you!