Indian tea from the state of Assam, which is popular throughout the world, may be losing its flavor due to climate change, according to reports from The Associated Press and The Scotsman newspaper.
Assam, the main tea growing region in India, has been experiencing rising temperatures, which have caused tea production to decline and the flavor of the Indian tea to be altered, AP noted.
The variety is used primarily in English breakfast tea.
Sudipta Nayan Goswami, a planter in Assam, said there were some subtle changes to the tea. “The flavor has changed from what it was before,” he told The Scotsman. “The creamy and strong flavor is no more. The changes will sharply hamper the demand for this variety of tea abroad.”
A professional tea taster also noted a similar change. L.P. Chaliha told AP that “earlier, we used to get a bright, strong cup. Now it’s not so.”
The region used to produce around 560,000 tons of the tea in 2007. In 2010, Assam only produced 460,000 tons, AP reported.
The Scotsman noted that rainfall in the region has steadily declined in the past 60 years by around 20 percent. At the same time, the average temperature has risen nearly 2 degrees Fahrenheit from 65.3 degrees Fahrenheit (18.5 degrees Celsius) to 67.1 degrees Fahrenheit (19.5 degrees Celsius).
Additionally, there were fewer days with sunshine during the monsoon season this year. “Days with sunshine were far fewer during the (monsoon] rains this year, leading to a shortfall in production and damp weather, unfavourable for tea,” head of the Indian Tea Association’s Assam Branch, Dhiraj Kakaty, told The Scotsman.
Assam, the main tea growing region in India, has been experiencing rising temperatures, which have caused tea production to decline and the flavor of the Indian tea to be altered, AP noted.
The variety is used primarily in English breakfast tea.
Sudipta Nayan Goswami, a planter in Assam, said there were some subtle changes to the tea. “The flavor has changed from what it was before,” he told The Scotsman. “The creamy and strong flavor is no more. The changes will sharply hamper the demand for this variety of tea abroad.”
A professional tea taster also noted a similar change. L.P. Chaliha told AP that “earlier, we used to get a bright, strong cup. Now it’s not so.”
The region used to produce around 560,000 tons of the tea in 2007. In 2010, Assam only produced 460,000 tons, AP reported.
The Scotsman noted that rainfall in the region has steadily declined in the past 60 years by around 20 percent. At the same time, the average temperature has risen nearly 2 degrees Fahrenheit from 65.3 degrees Fahrenheit (18.5 degrees Celsius) to 67.1 degrees Fahrenheit (19.5 degrees Celsius).
Additionally, there were fewer days with sunshine during the monsoon season this year. “Days with sunshine were far fewer during the (monsoon] rains this year, leading to a shortfall in production and damp weather, unfavourable for tea,” head of the Indian Tea Association’s Assam Branch, Dhiraj Kakaty, told The Scotsman.
