THE TEA GROWING COUNTRIES OF THE WORLD

CHINA

As the home of tea - China, with its many vast tea-growing regions, produces every kind of tea there is: white, yellow, green, oolong, pu-erh and black tea. They drink mostly green tea and export just about all of the black tea they produce. Exclusive and rare teas come from China, as well.

JAPAN

Tea was brought to Japan from China by Buddhist monks - they brought seeds, cuttings and seedlings and began to grow green tea. Today they are still huge producers of green tea and huge consumers of it, as well. Their green teas are steamed and this is what makes them unique to Japan. They are also the producers of Matcha Green Tea - a bright green powdered tea.

TAIWAN

This small island off the southeast coast of China produces some of the world's finest oolongs. Taiwan was formerly known as Formosa - you will still see some teas from Taiwan that bear the name Formosa.

INDIA

One of the largest black tea producing countries in the world. Home of Darjeeling, Assam and Nilgiri. Both CTC teas and orthodox teas are produced in India. Some tea estates are currently experimenting with growing white, green and oolong tea. Darjeeling teas are referred to as the "Champagne of Tea."

SRI LANKA

This tiny island is off the south coast of India, it also produces mostly black tea. Formerly known as Ceylon, this is a well-established name in superior black tea. At one time this island grew only coffee.

AFRICA

Relatively new in growing and producing tea, Africa is rapidly becoming a very large tea producing continent with many countries now growing tea. Mostly CTC black teas are coming out of Africa and many are blended with teas from India and other countries. Like India and Sri Lanka most teas from Africa are made for milk and sugar. Orthodox teas are now emerging as well as white and green teas. The herb Rooibos comes from Africa, too.

CHARLESTON, SOUTH CAROLINA

Off the coast of South Carolina, on the small island of Wadmalaw, is the Charleston Tea Plantation where they grow black tea with plants that came from China in the 1700s. They are now growing green tea and experimenting with white tea. Oregon now has some experimental tea gardens and Hawaii, as well. Fourteen different states in the US are now growing the Camellia sinensis - many are small farms - and some are only a few plants on a few acres. Mississippi is currently preparing to grow many acres of tea.

These other countries and a few others: Korea, Iran, Georgia (Russia), Vietnam, Turkey, Indonesia, Argentina, New Zealand, Thailand, are also growing and producing tea.