| Americans have a love affair with iced tea
The calorie-free beverage steeped from leaves is quite literally our cup of tea -- or more precisely, our glass of tea. Years before trendy cafes put ice into coffee and christened it with an exotic-sounding name, there was iced tea. Today, more than eight out of every 10 servings of tea we take in the U.S. are chilled. "Consumers like the taste. It is light and refreshing," said Joe Simrany, president of the Tea Association of the USA. "Plus, it is increasingly associated with a great many health benefits." Richard Blechynden is commonly credited for popularizing the summertime beverage more than a century ago, when he was manager of the Indian tea pavilion at the St. Louis World's Fair. Blechynden served black tea over ice to great fanfare in 1904, though cookbooks dating back to the early 19th century show that American housewives already had been enjoying chilled tea as an ingredient in summertime punches.
Lanka to increase market share of its tea in Canada
COLOMBO: Sri Lanka, the world�s largest tea exporter is vigorously trying to increase its market share in tea in North America�s second largest market of Canada by ten per cent in the coming year, says the Sri Lanka High Commission in Ottawa. �Within the next one year Ceylon Tea imports to Canada can be easily increased from the present level of US$ 4 million by ten per cent ,� said Trade Secretary Susiri Kumararatne of the Sri Lanka High Commission of Ottawa in a telephone interview from Toronto, Canada. The interview was done on the eve of a two day trade exhibition entitled �Canadian Tea and Coffee Shop� held on September 16 and 17 at the Congress Centre in Toronto. About 20 local Canadian importers of Ceylon Tea among 150 others are taking part in this annual event to promote tea in Canada.
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