The Tea Detective
Uncovering and Exploring the Facts About Tea
Uncovering and Exploring the Facts About Tea
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| The Beginning of Fair Trade |
| The original premise of the Fair Trade program began with several religious and humanitarian organizations coming together with the common goal of helping impoverished workers in some of the worlds poorest regions. |
| The idea was to help improve wages and living conditions for disadvantaged workers, help to rebuild the lives of displaced refugees, and help improve conditions following natural disasters. In 1968 at the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development in Delhi, the message was sent "trade not aid", which set the groundwork for the phenomenal growth of Fair Trade that followed. Five years later, in 1973 the first fairly traded coffee was imported by Fair Trade Organisatie in the Netherlands, from cooperatives of small farmers in Guatemala. Today in the U.K. the bulk of merchandise sold consists of Fair Trade food products. And in the U.S. food sales, which traditionally constituted less than 10%, now |
| represents over 30% of Fair Trade food products imported. The Fair Trade program was so successful that by the early 90's it had become an economic model worldwide, administered by many different organizations. Key among them were these four agencies considered to be the "founding fathers of Fair Trade":
these four main organizations came together to form FINE, an acronym based on the first letter of each name. |
| Fair Trade in Action |
| The money earned as premiums from Fair Trade doesn't go directly to the workers, but is invested back into the participating farm. This allows the producer to improve the infrastructure and provide the workers with fair wages as well as improve living conditions, and offer programs that improve the lives of both workers and their families. One example of Fair Trade in action is the Bogawantalawa Estate in Sri Lanka. With over 45,000 acres of tea gardens, and over 16,000 workers, the operation is the size of a small city. The premiums earned by this huge tea estate from the Fair Trade program enables it to continually improve not only the tea gardens, but the lives of their workers and families. The Bogawantalawa Estate proudly offers a number of programs to their workers, everything from savings and loan programs, to libraries, and computer learning centers. They also provide man- datory schooling for all children, and no child labor is ever allowed. They even offer scholarship programs for deserving students who excel at their studies. Another example of Fair Trade at work is the Ambootia Tea Estate in Darjeeling, India, where in 1968 one of the largest landslides in South Asia caused part of the plantation to go crashing into the valley below. The first Fair Trade premiums were received in 1995 to help in disaster relief and cleanup, as well as prevent further destruction to the garden itself. Money also went to help stabilize the local economy, providing aid to displaced workers during the rebuilding of the estate. The cost of fairly traded tea amounts to just pennies at the cash register, and it's doubtful you would even notice. But to the small farmers and producers, the tea workers and their families, it sends a powerful and important message. Simply - we support and appreciate your hard work and efforts to bring quality tea to our tables. Enjoy. For quality Fair Trade and Organic teas, I recommend a visit to Silver Leaf Tea Company. |
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| For more information or to learn more about tea, visit our other pages: Organic teas aren't just good for you, but Mother Earth, too. Learn more about how organic teas are grown, and how to ensure the tea you're buying is certified organic by the country it was grown in. How do I choose the right tea for me? Buying loose leaf tea for the first time can be confusing, but we've taken the work out of it for you. With lots of helpful tips and information, we've turned confusing into confident. How can I tell if the tea I'm buying is fresh, quality tea, at a fair price? Check out these handy tips for buying loose leaf tea before shopping online, by mail order, or from your local specialty tea shop. What are the main types of tea? Learn about the six main types of tea, how they are produced, and the different processing methods that distinguish them from one another. So who is Earl Grey, anyway? Earl Grey is probably the most recognizable of blended teas, but there are many other tasty blends that make the perfect beginning or finish to your day. The many health benefits of drinking tea. If after drinking a cup of tea you seem to feel better, it's not your imagination. Tea contains a long list of beneficial ingredients, including vitamins, minerals, and antioxidants that help fight everything from colds and flu, to cancer and heart disease. What secret ingredient is added when making pu-erh tea? Puerh tea is considered to be a medicinal tea in China, and the secret to producing this healthy tea may surprise you. How is jasmine tea made? Scented teas have been around since the third century, a process perfected by the Chinese. Take a close-up look at the manufacturing process for jasmine and other quality scented teas. Producing Lapsang Souchong tea - a closely guarded secret. For over 300 years the Chinese government kept the production method and location in China's northern Fujian Province, deep in the Wuyi Shan mountain forests, a closely guarded secret. Shou pu-erh - the faster aging pu-erh tea. How faster aging shou pu-erh is made, and the difference between shou pu-erh and its longer aging counterpart, sheng pu-erh. |
An easy-to-use ingenuiTEA teapot, whose ingenious design has been featured in The New York Times, Time Magazine and HGTV.
Receive A Guide To Tea, an 88-page book on the history and enjoyment of tea free with your first Adagio Teas order of $19 or more.
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Gifts for lovers of tea with free wrapping of all items.