That’s philosophical. However, I do think it is time the industry in China think clearly of a way forward.
While domestic consumption is able to sustain a rising price for now, this is not going on for too many years. Export will be taken over by productions in other regions, though not the same quality. I have been thinking about the issue for some time and think that a rising salary for the worker is only reasonable. We don’t enjoy our fine taste basing on exploitations of others.
However, the hard truth is, there are many production countries where the pickers are still paid less than 2 USD a day, when there is job. I have an article the month before last on that:
A couple of days ago, I had a very nice dinner with a friend from Switzerland who is an appreciator of fine wine. He ordered a 150 USD bottle and it’s gone just between the two of us. We were thinking if tea could have the same market acceptance, or even just one quarter of it, many people in the trade would be much better off.
If this is to happen, are we, however, further financing the slave drivers in the majority of tea production countries? While it is free economy and the workers free to choose their work in tea productions in China, Japan and Taiwan, the situations in most others are less than humane.
Where are we standing in this? I really don’t know.
