Page 66 - #53 English
P. 66

Tea

             Story by Coffee t&i Thailand
             Photos by Singha park

































        Singha Park




        The Kingdom of Healthy Tea




               “Singha Park” may not be a familiar name to some, but
        if you say it used to be called Boonrawd Farm, you would mostly
        get a big nod from most people. It’s easy to spot Singha Park and
        you will know you have come to the right place when you see a
        big golden Singha statue welcoming you into the farm. We are
        here to find out the story behind this famous landmark farm
        and learn about their renowned tea from Mr. Pobthong Swatdee,
        Marketing Manager of Boonrawd Farm Co., Ltd., and Mr, Tawan
        Bureekaew, Plant Manager and Tea Specialist of Maruzen Foods
        (Thailand) Co., Ltd.

        The Beginning
               Before it evolved to Singha Park, Mr. Santi Bhiromb-
        hakdi, President of Singha Corporation Co., Ltd., had a vision to
        create long-term jobs for the locals. “Chiangrai has a lot of cash
        crop, and tea stands out from most as Singha Park is 450 meter
        above sea level and the average temperature is suitable for tea.
        Besides, the decision to grow tea was made because it can create
        income and quite a lot of jobs,” Tawan took us through the initial   Growing Tea
        aim of Singha Park.                                         “The cultivation processes start at the preparation of
               Separated into 3 projects, the cultivation area covers as   tea saplings and the ground. Tea trees are grown for 3 years
        much as 600 rai. Each project covers 200 rai of land, and while   before they are ready to be harvested. Top young leaves that
        all of them are tea projects, each project started in different year   consist of 2 young leaves and a tender bud are hand-plucked.
        and supply to different segment of product. The first project   This part of tea has plenty of beneficial compounds such as
        produces green tea and Oolong tea while the second project   polyphenols and anti-oxidants, giving it the quality taste and
        supplies tea for Maruzen factories for their Japanese green teas,   aroma. Once they are harvested, they are transported to the
        and the third project produces 100% organic tea.     factory for processing. If it’s Oolong tea, the leaves are withered
                                                            66
   61   62   63   64   65   66   67   68   69   70   71