[Korean Global Awards]Hadong Green Tea-Ancient Green Tea Becomes Modern Brand [글로벌경영대상]

Hadong Green Tea

Green tea is to Korea what wine is to France. The quality of teas depends largely on its origins, and perhaps no other place in Korea is as environmentally suited for wild tea as Hadong. Nestled among Mt. Jiri alongside the Seomjin River, it has just the right humid conditions and the wide temperature range for teas.

Ancient Korean records show that the first tea tree was planted in Hadong area in the year 828. It has since become the major local staple, and has also been served to royal families. Hadong Green Tea was also the beverage of choice during the G-20 Summit in Seoul in 2011.

Hadong area accounts for more than a third of the nation’s tea farms, and together, Hadong farms produce more than 2,100 tons of tea leaves. The state-run Institute of Hadong Green Tea was established in 2005 to help transform Hadong Green Tea into a global brand. It’s a think tank designed to aid scientific studies and industrialization of local tea production.

By providing research and development, offering technical support and eco-friendly farming assistance, the Institute helps raise brand value of Hadong Green Tea. It has earned 10 patents and applied for 14 others and has published 20 academic papers on teas.

The Institute has also taken important steps toward globalization, earning approval from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration for exports and certification by the International Federation of Organic Agriculture Movements.

For all its efforts, the Institute has received a medal from the Knowledge Economy minister in Korea for successful regional developments in 2009 and 2011.
Globalizing Hadong Green Tea as “functional, fusion, and eco-friendly tea,” the goal is to offer high-end tea different from anything else on the market. Functional products include green tea lactic acid, while fusion products include soaps and shampoos with green tea extracts. Concretes and furniture with green tea extracts are among eco-friendly items.