Strike in Darjeeling settled – consequences expected until 2018

Before the strike in Darjeeling: tea pluckers at work in Darjeeling.. © Karin Heinze

The strike of tea pickers in the famous tea growing region Darjeeling in the Indian state of West Bengal has come to an end after 104 days. Organic quality tea from Darjeeling is highly regarded all over the world. We asked organic tea firms about the impact the strike is having. Many organic tea manufacturers have sufficient stocks for 2017. But the fact is that bottlenecks in supply could continue into next year and also that the strike has caused great financial damage.

Most of the tea pickers are women.© Karin Heinze

The strike in Darjeeling was politically motivated: Since the 1980s the Gorkhas, a minority population to which, however, the majority of workers in the tea plantations belong, have been demanding their own federal state (see also: blog.oasis-versand.de). Because in the case of fine Darjeeling teas only the young shoots and leaves are picked the strike has has a dramatic impact on the tea gardens. According to the company Lebensbaum the grass between the tea bushes has now grown high and Franziska Geyer, managing director of Ökotopia, reports: “Even though the strike has been settled and people are at work again the tea gardens are in a very neglected condition and have to be restored.” She expects the impact of the strike to last into next year. For 2017 she estimates loss of harvest of around 40 percent. Lebensbaum sees long-term damage in excess of 50 million euros.

Franziska Geyer, CEO of the German organic tea company Ökotopia at a visit in Darjeeling 2016. © Karin Heinze

Able to supply or not? Information from organic tea manufacturers

Despite the strike, the German market leader in organic tea, Lebensbaum, can continue tosupply its organic tea from Darjeeling. “That's down to our long-standing partnership with our grower Ambootia, a flagship company in Darjeeling,” Lebensbaum explains. Ökotopia in Berlin also has long-term and close partnerships with its suppliers in Darjeeling and its stocks are enough to cover all its orders. The Austrian firm Sonnentor has been assured by its grower that it will receive the quantity of Darjeeling tea that it needs. Yogi Tea's tea mixtures are in no way affected because the company doesn't use any raw materials from Darjeeling. Pukka Tea says that it can't yet see how the strike in Darjeeling will impact on its supply capability.

In the manufacturing sites in Darjeeling also most of the workers are women. © Karin Heinze

At Oasis the situation is quite different: Ralph Munz, managing partner of the German online organic tea trader, explains: “The strike is having a serious impact on us. Because no tea has been produced in Darjeeling since the middle of June, at the moment we can only offer Darjeeling tea from our declining stocks.” Munz does not expect that there will be any further tea production in Darjeeling this year: “The tea bushes would have to be hard pruned for young shoots to be ready for picking. That would take at least six weeks, and in between there are public holidays and at the end of October the season is over.”

Very steep tea gardens in an impressive mountain landscape. © Karin Heinze

In its weekly Newsletter and in its blog under blog.oasis-versand.de Oasis informs its customers about the ongoing situation in Darjeeling and the effect on tea production.

Darjeeling is a very special tea place

The video, made in 2016 in Darjeeling, shows the stages from harvesting to processing in the production of tea. An interview with Gautam Mohan, Tea Promoters India, describes the special characteristics of the “tea state” Darjeeling.