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This is Devagiri. An independent tea estate since 1947.
Now supplying farm to table to break the cycle of poverty.
Why farm to table?
Because these communities have earned the basic dignity of fair reward
Whether it's tea that comes from Sri Lanka (Ceylon), Kenya or India, consumers are used to seeing images of the poor communities associated with farming and production. Like others, before we took Devagiri on, we assumed that this poverty was for some reason inevitable, and we quickly realised it isn't.
The cause of this poverty is simple- the standard supply chain is too long and the value is eroded by various middlemen.
1kg of tea sells for £3.00 at the start of the supply chain and just 2 grams (1 cup) sells for the same amount in a UK restaurant at the end of the supply chain.
There are usually about 5 players in the chain, so too little goes back to the people who produce the tea.
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As a result, for over 150 years, entire communities have been locked in a cycle of poverty and stunted social mobility; with the impacts of high rates of debt, suicide and alcoholism and low rates of educational attainment. To add insult to injury, the industry is awash with charitable programmes. They don't want help. They work hard and they deserve the dignity of fair reward, not the insult of charity instead of fair reward.
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To us, the solution is simple. Given the ease of communication in today’s global market, like wine, it should be possible for tea to be sold farm to table, or at the very least for the supply chain to be shrunk substantially.
This would end this needless cycle of poverty; it would also significantly shrink carbon footprint and offer genuine traceability of ethics and provenance.
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Now that we see this, we can’t “unsee it”. And we have dedicated ourselves to demonstrating that with no change to the standard retail price, communities can be released from the poverty that has gripped them for so long.
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Contact Us
Sri Lanka
Devagiri Estate
Yakkalamulla
Southern Province
UK
Stella Maris
Wiseman's Bridge
Wales SA67 8NX
Online
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