Taiwan Tea Production

In the early days, Taiwan’s tea industry primarily focused on export. After 1973, due to economic development and rising production costs, Taiwanese tea lost its export competitiveness, leading to a decline in production in export-driven tea regions such as Taoyuan, Hsinchu, and Miaoli. At the same time, rising living standards shifted Taiwanese tea toward refined and high-mountain production, resulting in a significant increase in output from domestic-focused tea regions like Nantou, Chiayi, and Taichung.

Taiwan’s tea production peaked in 1973, with total island-wide production reaching 28,000 metric tons that year, after which it steadily declined to approximately 17,000 metric tons by 2011. Overall, Taiwan’s tea production is still decreasing. However, looking at production value, the reduction is mostly in lower-priced teas, while the value of premium and high-mountain teas continues to rise.