Indian, Japanese researchers in quest for new tea variety
Indian and Japanese researchers are planning to team up in quest of a "truly exotic" tea to tickle the tastebuds of millions around the world. India's Tea Research Association and Japan's Kyoto University have signed an agreement to carry out the research in search of the new variety, Mridul Hazarika, director of the Tocklai Tea Experimental Station in India's north-east, told AFP.
"Our goal is to come up with a tea variety that would neither be like the normal cut leaf or the big-leaf orthodox teas. It would be something truly exotic," he said. Research will start next April at Tocklai in Assam state, Mr Hazarika said.
"We hope experts from these two institutes will be able to achieve what we believe could be a landmark value addition to conventional tea," he said. The Tocklai Station was set up in Jorhat in 1901 and is one of the world's leading tea research institutions.
- AFP