Business Daily from THE HINDU group of publications
Tuesday, Aug 15, 2006
Business Daily from THE HINDU group of publications Tuesday, Aug 15, 2006 |
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Standards & Benchmarks Agri-Biz & Commodities - Tea Industry & Economy - Beverages Cola controversy — A storm brewing in domestic tea cups Kohinoor Mandal
Explanation The pesticide level of 14.02 mg/kg ppm is only for dry black tea leaves. The boiling or soaking process reduces the pesticide level in the final cup of tea.
Kolkata , Aug. 14 The on-going cola controversy over pesticides presence in colas has put the domestic tea industry in a quandary. In a recent advertisement put out by a leading multi-national soft drink producer, it has been stated that the total tolerance limit of pesticide in tea was 14.02 mg/kg parts per million (ppm).
Not happy
Tea industry leaders are not really happy with this statement. Like in the past, this time too the industry wanted to keep itself away from the controversy though they had the opportunity of scoring a few brownie points over their toughest competitor. Senior officials of Indian Tea Association have already scanned the advertisements of the cola major and said that though there is nothing wrong in it still it is not correct either. "The figure mentioned is the maximum level of pesticide that can be found in dry black tea leaves. However, you must understand that in one single tea garden no planter would be using all types of pesticides that are available in the market. It is like adding apples with oranges", the official told Business Line. He said that in any sample of tea collected anywhere in the country, the level of pesticide would not be that high as mentioned in the advertisement. There is a second aspect too. The pesticide level of 14.02 mg/kg ppm is only for dry black tea leaves. "Tea is consumed not as dry leaves but after making the infusion where we boil the water and allow the leaves either to soak or boil further. This process further reduces the pesticide level", the official explained.
Not in final cup
According to him, the matter that should be of concern is the pesticide level in the final cup of tea and not in the dry tea leaves, which was substantially lower than the one mentioned in the advertisement. "It is impossible to find the actual pesticide level in the final cup of tea because the process of making the cup of tea varies from person to person", he further explained. However, the industry is not ready to lodge a formal protest against the cola major. "This issue is like a sleeping tiger, and better not to wake him up", the official stated. He added that domestic tea consumption is growing at a good pace. ITA statistics state that per capita consumption has increased to 733 grams per annum from 630-640 gm per annum in 1996-97 marking a CAGR (compounded annual growth rate) of 3.3 per cent. "Moreover, we do not have that amount of financial clout to take on the multi-national cola majors. Let them say whatever they feel like, we would not reciprocate at this point of time", he said.
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