History of tea in India 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. [This tea was not for export - dis ambiguities needed] Beginning in the 1850s, the tea industry rapidly expanded, consuming vast tracts of land for tea plantations. By the turn of the century, Assam became the leading tea producing region in the world. India was the top producer of tea for nearly a century, but recently China has overtaken India as the top tea producer due to increased land availability. Indian tea companies have acquired
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%