NEWS
29 Aug 2020
What inspired you to create an organic accredited range of teas?
As a small, New Zealand company, organic growing is important to us to keep our products in line with the New Zealand image. The world does have a certain expectation from New Zealand produce and being able to say that our tea is organic certified does add that authenticity and transparency which is important to overseas (and domestic) consumers.
It is also important to us to be innovative and develop sustainable methods for tea farming, in light of current industry issues. Being certified organic is just one part of that, as well as growing tea in a non-traditional region, and being fully traceable and ISO22000 HACCP certified across all aspects of production.
It's important to note that New Zealand doesn't have regulations for organic products, which might come as a surprise to some - the only way to ensure a product is truly organic is if they have a third-party certification. Zealong tea is certified organic by BioGro, which is also compliant with EU, USDA, and Canada Organic standards, which is useful going into overseas markets. The process of converting the land to organic took about four or five years initially, but it was very much worth it, to be sure we are growing our tea how we think is the right way - no compromises.
What were the main challenges you faced in order to get your organic range started; and are you still facing these challenges today?
Of course, being the only commercial tea estate in New Zealand, there was no tea industry existing here. With our founder not coming from a tea background, we were going in blind, and there was a lot of trial and error to find the best way to plant the tea, to harvest and produce tea.
The current challenges we face today are mostly related to our organic certification, and how we can efficiently produce tea while remaining true to our vision of a 100% organic, New Zealand-grown tea.
What were the most memorable, defying moments during this time?
Perhaps THE most memorable and defining moment of starting Zealong Tea Estate is the tea plants’ origin. Our founder, Vincent, brought 1,500 tea cuttings from Asia, but after 10 months of quarantine due to New Zealand’s strict biosecurity, only 130 survived. This was a blessing in disguise – our 1.2 million tea plants are all descended from these strong survivor plants.
What helped you to see it through to the end?
Having an open-minded and diverse team around us from the start, who were passionate about tea and about the vision of a true New Zealand tea. Zealong Tea Estate would not be what it is today without the help and input from people with different backgrounds, be it cultural or otherwise.
What are your plans for the next 5 years?
At the moment our main focus is spreading the word that yes, New Zealand is one of the countries on the tea-growing map - there are still many people even here in Hamilton who don't know that world-class tea is being grown in their backyard! We are getting there though, with a trade deal in Germany (our number one market at the moment) and the international awards I mentioned earlier. The next five years will also see us grow our visitor experiences, with the recent development of our visitor and conference centre on the estate.
