The Indian Institute of Plantation Management (IIPM), an autonomous body promoted by the Ministry of Commerce, has set up a Centre of Excellence for Tea Tasting and Marketing (TTM) at its campus in Bangalore. The centre, sponsored by the Tea Board of India, will provide training to students, planters and corporates on how to prepare, taste and sell different varieties of teas.
“We conduct 45 days course on tea tasting for students and planters with both theoretical and practical knowledge. We also provide on-site training on short-term basis to corporates at different locations in tea growing regions. We have set up a lab which is certified under ISO 17024 and the facilities provided are on par with any international labs,” V G Dhanakumar, Director, IIPM said.
The IIPM Centre of Excellence on Tea is the first ISO certified lab in the academic world in India. The Centre is equipped with electronic nose, a device used to detect odors or flavours.
The Tea Board of India has provided a grant of Rs 25 lakh to set up the Centre of Excellence. The IIPM has also opened a campus in Guwahati, Assam for conducting training courses for planters and students of North Eastern states, he said.
IIPM has tied up with several corporate houses including J Thomas, a Kolkata-based tea trading house, Tata Tea among others to provide tea tasting training to their students.
Similarly, IIPM is also setting up Coffee Entrepreneurship Centre, sponsored by Coffee Board of India. It would conduct a three month course on coffee tasting, how to prepare coffee and market it. The Coffee Board has sanctioned a grant of Rs 30 lakh for the centre, which will be operational within two months, Dhanakumar said.
The IIPM is holding its 11th annual convocation on May 26, 2012. About 140 students with post-graduate degree on agri-business and plantation management will be awarded degree certificates.