Climate Change Affecting Tea

Climate change is not something of future science fiction novels or a debate between politicians arguing about finding an acceptable level of CO2 in industrial world. The reality of what climate change means to a person did not come clear until the past six months when unpredictable weather patterns hit areas of the world to extreme weather conditions. Can you imagine snow storms in the United States where there has been no snowfalls or the extensive flooding in the United Kingdom?

Not only did the weather impact lives and displacement but also major agricultural land. In the short term this may seem of little impact. But in the not so far distant the lost of food producing resources will impact on food availability and prices.

This also affected the tea growing regions of the world, as this recent and sudden shift of increased temperatures with major drought conditions have seen production fall as much as 70% in the Assam region of India. With the increasing demand on the resurgence of this once tea toddler nation this can only mean limited supplies and an increase of prices. It is the simple theory of law of supply and demand. Would this mean once again that tea becomes he commodity of the rich, as tea was in the 17th century?

What is of concern to me personally are the lives of the tea workers that would be displaced. The tea worker is the backbone of the tea industry where mechanization is not used. In fact it is the delicate hand of the woman picker who can 10 kg a day but with little work there will be increased poverty. There has also been in the media that the wages are already low and some of the daughters of the tea workers are sold into slavery and prostitution.

As a consumer we need to ensure that the words fair trade on the box means accountability to those who give us that drink. The Ethical Tea Partnership which certifies Twinings and Tetley state they are powerless to set wages but if corporations demand better conditions or no business than change can happen. Without a leader in the tea industry there will be more abuse and if we, the consumer ignore the reality then we are silent partners in the slave trade.

Food and Tea

LAUNCH FOOD AND TEA ON AMAZON 

 

Chef Robert Rubino trained at the Culinary Institute of America and in restaurants in Bologna, Paris, Provence, Vancouver and Buenos Aires. Together with Carol Mark, tea sommelier, they bring together their passion for good food and show you how to utilize tea to enhance taste profiles of a wide range of dishes. Chef Robert concentrates on starters and mains, while tea sommelier, Carol utilizes her skills in desserts and drinks.

Tea is a unique ingredient which, like fine wine, reflects the terroir and produces unique taste profiles for food.
The freshest ingredients have been sourced and used from butchers and farmers who take pride in their product and produce.

Tea Travels

OCEAN BLEND TEA CO. LTD TIN, TORONTO CANADA

Toronto meaning "meeting place" or "where sticks stands in water" was founded by the Iroquois, In 1793 the Town of York was founded by John Graves Simcoe. As a British colony trade was a key component with the fur trade and exchange of goods including tea.

Growing up in Canada, I was not aware of this until I had the pleasure of having Toronto historian Bruce Bell at The Art of Tea event when he spoke of Toronto's tea history. The tin is an example of the many tea companies that existed in Toronto before the multi-nationals.

Toronto is steeped in a tea history- let us begin our discovery with Bruce Bell.

 

 

Christmas Banquet Tea by Fortnum & Mason

The Christmas basket includes this lovely Christmas tea of black tea, star anise, cloves, safflower petals and mulled wine flavouring combined to create this exquisite tasting tea. I am drinking it in anticipation of the holiday. I have half a tin left from last year and saved it for this year. Tea has a shelf life of a maximum of two years.

It just has a lovely taste and aroma with just a hint of spices so one appreciated the base, which is a black tea. I just have the tea plain and it pairs well with holiday fare or on its own.

Tea

James Norwood Pratt, tea author and tea master on his book tour in Toronto, ” The Ultimate Tea Lover’s Treasury”.

                       Valerie his wife and James Norwood Pratt at T-buds Tea Lounge, Toronto


I asked James-

1) That more people who are older are switching to tea instead of coffee and do you feel there is more variety in tea to interest coffee drinks as well as health reasons for the switch.
"Tea and Time: To judge from my own experience, coffee gradually ceases to be your friend after age 45 or so. You don’t swear off, you just enjoy it less and less and drink tea more. This seems to be the case with lots of people. That tea is healthier and offers wider variety is true also, but a minor factor in the switch I think."

2) What is your favourite tea at this moment?
"Favorite tea? Well we’ve just finished our afternoon Darjeeling (Risheehat Estate 2013 Second Flush Lot # 141) and I’m strongly inclined to make a Phoenix Dancong Fengshuang oolong from the mountain covered with this ancient single-trunk type varietal in Guangdong province, China. When you get a specific craving like that, nothing else will do."

3) You mention tea as a somewhat of a spiritual experience. Would this be similar as to taking “wine as the blood of Christ” in communion or would you describe it as a meditation practice?
"Tea is quiet, and makes a quiet place inside you when you drink it. It gives you pause, you might say, a chance to enter the quiet in your own mind for a moment and just be. It gives the spirit an adjustment, the way a yoga stretch can ease the body, and restores normal, healthy functioning. This is tea’s main value to mental health, I think, and one of our main reasons to love it.”“