Two villagers from Anhua county show customers the process of making dark tea in Beijing on April 28, 2018. [Photo by Zhang Xingjian/chinadaily.com.cn]

Statistics show that in 2017, 22 thousand hectares in the county have been planted with tea, yielding 75,000 tons in processed tea with a total output value of 15.2 billion yuan.

More than 60 tea-oriented enterprises have signed an agreement with the local government to jointly promote the dark tea industry. Also, 350,000 people in the county are engaged in jobs related to dark tea, generating 3 billion yuan in income.

“Thanks to the abundant vegetation, local villagers have joined the team to produce dark tea in recent years. Some of them have even developed the business model and sold products on multiple platforms, which in turn attracts more and more people in the production of dark tea,” says Ma Xiaohui, assistant president of Hunan Yiqingyuan Tea Industry.

In the future, the county will set out to build itself into the cultural center of dark tea across the globe.

“To better promote the local tea industry, we also plan to vigorously promote the construction of key projects, such as founding the Anhua Dark Tea School, Anhua Tea Town and Anhua Ecological Experience Garden as well as upgrading infrastructure for the Yuntai Mountain scenic spot,” says Xiong.