| "We are very happy that our efforts have paid off. We believe the new order will stop the practice of sub-standard tea re-export from India," Upasi president Anil Bhandari said. |
| The commerce ministry issued the Tea Control Order to protect the brand equity of Indian tea in the overseas markets as rampant re-export of sub-standard tea was earning a bad name for India, Bhandari said. |
| The government allows duty-free tea imports on the condition that an equivalent amount be re-exported after some value-addition. |
| However, this consignment cannot be marked 'Made-in-India' and the label must carry the blending contents. Duty-free imported tea also cannot be sold in the local market. |
| Often, re-exported tea did not meet quality specifications of the Indian Food Adulteration Act, Bhandari said. "We have been noticing that imported tea is being re-exported without any value-addition," Bhandari said. |
| "The sub-standard tea is being sold abroad as Indian tea. The trend is quite detrimental for the domestic industry," he said. |
| In January, a tea consignment to Libya was found inferior. However, it was found that the tea was not made in India but was re-exported as Indian tea. |
| "After the Libya consignment case, we persuaded the commerce ministry to come up with strict guidelines to stop the practice," Bhandari said. |
| He said some imported tea also finds its way to the local market. |
| Last month, the association asked the commerce ministry to take action against companies selling imported tea in the local market. |
| Tea imports rose 233 per cent to 30 million kg during calendar 2004 compared with nine million kg in the previous year. |
| Vietnam contributed 17 million kg of the total tea imports. Sri Lanka, Indonesia and Nepal were the three other major tea importers in India. |
| India is the world's biggest tea producer. In 2004, the country's tea output stood at 820.22 million kg. |
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