Tea importer disputes claim

Press, 2 June 1982, Page 16

Tea importer disputes claim

All tea sold in New Zealand must be "pure" tea and any brand shown to be impure would be illegal, says Mr A. Moore, managing director of Quality Packers. Ltd. Auckland. "The Press" on May 21, had reported Mr Peter Elvy, general manager of Trade Aid (N.Z.). Ltd. as saying that commercial pure tea was becoming hard to obtain since most modern brands of tea contained blends of cheaper teas. Trade Aid had just imported its first shipment of packaged tea. "It is equally untrue that blending teas — an expert skill practised throughout the tea-drinking world — is aimed at the reduction of either quality or price." Mr Moore said. "The whole purpose of blending is consistency and the maintenance of a uniform level of quality.” To assert, as Mr Elvy had done, that orange pekoe tea

was sweeter than most brands was nonsensical, Mr Moore said. "As a blender of 35. years international experience, I should know, and I do not believe Mr Elvy's purchase consists of orange pekoe, which is a grade seldom bought in New Zealand," .he said. "Quality Packers markets at least two brands of specialty tea containing only tea from Sri Lanka,” he said. Mr Elvy had been misleading about the life and earnings of a Tamil tea-picker, Mr Moore said. Mr Elvy said that 1c of every Trade Aid packet of tea went to the Tamil teapickers in Sri Lanka. “I would suggest that the very solid support given by the established trade to the Colombo tea auctions for many decades has been of far more value to the industry and its workers than Trade Aid’s efforts will ever be," Mr Moore said.