A cup of joe vs a cup of tea. Go ahead, take your pick

BY PARTHA DASGUPTA

PHOTO: AFP

THOUGH ANNUAL consumption patterns for tea in India remains far higher than coffee, low production and high prices are slowing down the rise in the country’s tea consumption. Figures released by the Kolkata-based Tea Board showed India’s tea consumption registering a marginal 0.7 percent growth in 2009-10, a sharp drop from the 3.5 percent rise in the previous year. In comparison, India’s coffee consumption is growing at an annual rate of 5 to 6 percent, though in absolute terms, tea consumption is still streets ahead of that of coffee.

The slow growth in tea consumption is happening because of “rising commodity cost over the past two years. Add to this the inflationary pressure on sugar and milk”, says Sushanth Dash, vice-president of Tata Global Beverages Ltd.

But Coffee Board officials disagree, saying the spurt in consumption was prompted by the country’s coffee-cafe culture in urban areas and also due to the concerted efforts of coffee marketers in promoting the beverage as a lifestyle drink. Almost 73 percent of this consumption was in urban areas in north India, while 27 percent was in rural areas, mainly in the south.

Incidentally, India is also Asia’s biggest coffee exporter, sending 70 percent of its 308,000 tonnes produce to global markets. “I am not surprised, tea marketing in India has always been a problem,” says Dolly Roy, a tea taster in Kolkata.

DP Chakravarti, vice-president, Goodricke Group Ltd, agrees, but adds that many reasons needed to be factored in before determining what was behind the shift. “As for production, yes, there has been a slump due to climatic reasons and the drought in Assam,” he says.