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The Tea Board India, in collaboration with the Directorate of Agribusiness Development of Tamil Nadu Agricultural University (TNAU), organised a Tea Fair at the university to promote quality tea produced across south India.

The fair featured leading tea brands representing major tea-growing regions of south India, including the Nilgiris, high ranges of Anamalai hills, Wayanad and Karnataka. The programme also featured a buyer-seller interactive session. The event drew about 110 buyers and sellers, including small-scale tea growers.

As many as 530 TNAU students and 30 scientists, too, joined the visitors to experience region-specific tea flavours and quality characteristics.

E. Somasundaram, director, Directorate of Agribusiness Development, TNAU, mooted aggregation of small-scale tea growers to form a brand, for competing with corporate brands.

K. Subrahmaniyan, Acting Vice-Chancellor, TNAU, saw scope for students to pursue their entrepreneurial career in the tea value chain.

M. Bharani Kumaar, Executive Director, Tea Board India, South Zonal Office, Coonoor, said that south India possesses some of the world’s finest tea-growing regions, in varied agro-climatic conditions, elevation and flavour profile.

Addressing a technical session, Rajeev Baid, proprietor, Chai Chun Tea Boutique, West Bengal, cited his own entrepreneurial path in a motivation talk.

The buyer–seller interactive session, the organisers said, provided valuable insights into speciality tea marketing, branding, packaging and consumer preferences.

Underscoring the significance of innovation, technology, value addition, quality assurance and entrepreneurship in shaping the future of the Indian tea industry, Tea Board India threw light on how students can make impactful contributions.