Jan 07, 2022

Ceylon Teas - A History

The history of Ceylon Tea dates back to the late 1860’s, when tea was the commercial crop selected to replace coffee following the devastation wrought by the coffee blight that swept through the coffee plantations of Sri Lanka. The blight saw acres of coffee plantations – some generations old – stripped and prepped, for a crop that its growers initially knew little to nothing about.

The first commercial tea plantation and estate was established by a Scotsman by the name of James Taylor in 1867 in Kandy, with a crop grown on just 19 acres of land. Over time, Taylor developed more and more complex and detailed systems and equipment for the rolling, firing and drying of tea leaves – resulting in the first commercial crop of tea grown and manufactured exclusively in Sri Lanka. The process was so successful, that Taylor shortly thereafter exported 23 lbs of what would come to be known as Ceylon Tea, to London. He continued to be an innovator in the tea industry – developing processes and machinery that would change the course of a fledgling industry and educating countless planters and estates on how to properly grow and cultivate tea.

Over the little more than 150 years since then, the Ceylon Tea industry has grown exponentially. The growth in this industry attracted the attention of experienced and renowned planters, including personalities such as Randolph Trafford, a pioneer planter who began his career in coffee but later delved deep into the intricacies and arts of tea.

With the popularity of tea growing, it soon began making waves at auctions – the first of which was hosted by the Ceylon Chamber of Commerce at Somerville & Co in July 1883.

This was soon followed by a million tea packets being sold at the Chicago World Fair in 1893, with tea hitting a record price of £36.15/pound at the London Tea Auctions.

This proved to be the kick-off for Ceylon Tea, with demand growing massively, worldwide for the delicacy that was now Ceylon Tea.

Today Ceylon Tea is renowned as the finest tea in the world – resulting in an unrivalled position as a major contributor to the National GDP and an incredible foreign revenue generator. The industry locally has grown enormously, placing Sri Lanka as the 4 th largest tea producer in the world - no small feat given that the industry is relatively new to the country.

The Sri Lankan tea industry currently speaks for over a million jobs, both in estates and ancillary services. What began as a virtual accident – the result of necessity and loss – proved to be a lifesaver for an entire community and has, 150 years later, proven itself to be the defining characteristic of perseverance and innovation.