Indian entrepreneur sells tea having 24 carat edible gold flakes

New Delhi, May 31 (EFE).- An Indian entrepreneur has launched tea containing 24 carat gold leaves into the market at a price of more than $3,000 for a kilogram in an attempt to secure a niche in the highly competitive market for the much loved beverage.

Swarna Panam, literally the “golden drink,” is “pure indulgence,” according to Ranjit Baruah, who founded the Aromics Tea Company three years ago in Guwahati, capital of the northeastern state of Assam, which produces around half of all the tea from India.

This is the latest in a series of teas with which Baruah has sought to gain public attention and weather the challenges brought about by the coronavirus pandemic.

Other products include a “really strong” tea named after Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, while another comes mixed with one of the world’s most spicy peppers, Baruah told EFE on Tuesday.

Mixed with gold flakes, the product launched earlier this month is “a very exotic combination of Assam tea” and comes in a special box with accessories for a price of 25,000 rupees ($322) for 100 grams.

It is basically a limited edition of 15 boxes, of which 12 have already been sold, Baruah revealed.

Following two decades of experience in the tea sector, the entrepreneur started his own company in 2019 with the aim of “innovating” in the market and “giving a good experience to the consumer.”

He also aims to acquire tea from small producers while focused on quality.

Tea mixed with edible gold is not new to the international market, admitted Baruah, who did not hesitate to explain that it was inspired by luxury products adorned with this precious metal in Dubai.

Now, after two years of supply chain disruptions caused by the pandemic, Baruah has opted for a luxury product meant to gain public attention.

Assam harvested over half of the 1.329 billion tonnes of tea produced in India in 2021, according to data from the Indian Tea Association (ITA).

Despite the prominence of this sector in the northeastern state, tea plantations are largely marked by the precarious state of its workers, as noted in a report last year by the nonprofit Oxfam India.

The organization pointed out that the tea garden workers received daily wages of around 160-180 rupees per day, which was insufficient for a decent life. EFE

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