Taiwan is the first to be referred when oolong tea is generally mentioned. This is imperceptibly sharpening a competitive edge of Taiwanese tea on the market. To expand its popularity, uplift its position and introduce the special flavour to Vietnamese people, Vina Suzuki Tea Co., Ltd decided to grow oolong tea in Di Linh district, Lam Dong province.
Mr Chang Chao Jung, Deputy General Director of Vina Suzuki Tea Co., Ltd, said: In 2008 and 2009, the Vietnamese tea industry faced daunting challenges and difficulties owing to the global economic crisis. Many Japanese tea producers and traders in Vietnam had to abandon or shift to other business operations. Vina Suzuki Tea Co., Ltd is a wholly Taiwanese-invested business which was previously run by a Japanese company.
When the company was taken over, its tea farms had turned barren, tea quality was very low, and production equipment was backward or broken, the company decided to start a deep restructuring, from pooling and zoning material areas to replacing all equipment and technology with Taiwanese ones. With its deep traditional experience in Oolong tea production, Vina Suzuki Tea has created a unique flavour in comparison with the rest in the region. At present, the company has completed zoning out material zones and installing production equipment and it is not capable of manufacturing and catering for big contracts from domestic and international customers.
In addition to its existing tea farms, the company can also purchase fresh tea from local tea farmers to boost up production and increase profits. However, the deputy general director said that to ensure stable tea quality and safety control, the company just concentrates on using tea from its own farms. Currently, the company is managing over 100 ha of tea grown and tended according to the company’s consistent techniques and processes, enough for its production facilities. Thanks to perfect control over all production processes from cultivating to processing and packaging, the company’s tea has been certified the WTO certification and ISO2200:2005 certificate. All products of the company are exported to Taiwan and Germany. The company is planning to launch ORGANIC tea lines onto the Vietnamese market.
Mr Chang Chao Jung added that the company has received a lot of incentives from Lam Dong province, particularly land and tax. However, the company expects more from provincial and local authorities to boost up its operations, position brand names, and expand its distribution networks in Vietnam.
Vietnamese
