Timeline of Nusantara Tea Culture

A valuable history is hidden behind the beautiful green expanse of tea plantations that we enjoy today. The shrub traveled a long path before it became the “green gold” that is a source of livelihood for many people.

KOMPAS/RIZA FATHONI

A woman walks with her son at a tea plantation Empalasmen V Cipuspa, Sukaresmi village, Rancabali, Bandung regency, West Java, on June 23, 2019 (23/6/2019).

The far-reaching history of tea in Indonesia began in 1684, when the seeds of the tea plant (Camellia sinensis) came to Indonesia from Japan. Tea was brought to Jakarta, then named Batavia, by Andreas Cleyer – a German doctor, teacher, and botanist, who was a trader with the Dutch East Indies Company (VOC).

The tea plant was only ornamental at the time and not used in trade. The colonial government started developing tea as a trade commodity in 1728, when it started importing tea seeds in bulk from China. However, this attempt was not very successful.