Value chain analysis of green tea leaf and an application in the tea sector

Tea, which is grown by one million producers in the Eastern Black Sea region in the form of small family business in an area of eight hundred thousand decares, is one of the main products of strategic importance for our country and has a great impact on the economic structure of the region. With the fresh tea production in the region, the entire tea need of our country is met. This sector, which saves Turkey from foreign purchases, also creates job opportunities in the region. The future of the tea industry largely depends on the quality of the fresh tea produced rather than the quantity of tea production. Therefore, the growth of the sector, attracting buyers and achieving a higher price will depend on maintaining high tea quality, producing value-added tea, developing our own brands, and gaining a reputation as an environmentally friendly and ethical tea producing country. In order to realize this, every stage of the value chain of fresh tea can be examined and what needs to be done for better quality and efficient fresh tea production can be determined and put into practice. Rize, Trabzon and Artvin provinces where tea is cultivated were selected for the area where the research will be conducted. In this study, the situation of the fresh tea value chain was revealed with the results obtained from the analysis of the data collected through interviews, observations and surveys with tea producers. According to the findings and determinations, the need for workers due to the lack of labor force in families, lack of awareness in fertilizer selection and application, and deficiencies related to soil management were identified as the most important problems.