Indian tea culture the Yandaboo Treaty. In 1837, the first English tea garden was established at Chabua in Upper Assam; in 1840, the Assam Tea Company began the commercial production of tea in the region, run by indentured servitude of the local inhabitants. Beginning in the 1850s, the tea industry rapidly expanded, consuming vast tracts of land for tea plantations. By the start of the 20th century, Assam became the leading tea producing region in the world. But despite the discovery of the indigenous "Camellia sinensis" plant, the tea industry in India began with 42,000 seedlings germinated from a consignment of 80,000 seeds
Tea production in Sri Lanka ( million lbs) in 2000. World tea production in 2001 rose 3.7% to 3.022 million tonnes ( million short tons), but in Sri Lanka tea exports rose to an all-time high of $658 million from $595 million the previous year. Currently, however, Sri Lanka, whilst the world's largest exporter of tea, is far behind India and China in terms of total production. In 2003 the government in Sri Lanka sought to protect the country's near $700 million tea industry during the 2003 Iraq War. The war in Iraq caused panic, particularly among small-scale Sri Lankan tea growers who represent 69%