In the highest price ever fetched by any tea in an auction in the world, gold tea produced by Manohari Tea Estate of Assam was sold for Rs 50,000 per kg at the Gauhati Tea Auction Centre on July 30.
The Manohari Gold Tea, which had debuted in the auction market last year, was sold for Rs 39,001 per kg then, which was a record at that time, but was surpassed by other speciality tea auctioned through GTAC later last year itself.
Breaking all records, Sale no 31, Lot No 5014 of ‘Manohari Gold’ at the auction was sold for Rs 50,000, which was bought by Saurav Tea Traders Pvt Ltd.
Rajan Lohia, proprietor of Manohari Tea Estate, told this correspondent that 2 kgs were offered for auction.
He said, “We have produced 5 kg of gold tea this year, after having produced 2.5 kg last year. There is demand for more, but the season for producing it is already over”.
He further said, “This hand plucked gold tea is an indication of the standard of Assam Tea, but is lacking the admiration and support the Industry deserves. The industry needs more support from the government, else Assam tea will be history”.
Lohia thanked the Tea Board of India for enhancing the cap from Rs 40,000, which made the tea get its worth.
The secretary of Guwahati Tea Auction Buyers Association, Dinesh Bihani, said, “This is a proud moment for GTAC. The Auction Centre is giving such a platform where specialty tea makes new records and more demands are seen across India. This will encourage other quality tea producers to make good quality specialty tea and send it to GTAC which is now a hub for specialty tea”.
