In the smallest country of mainland Africa, The Gambia offers fifty miles of coastline that lies in the shape of a smile on the face of Senegal. The ‘Smiling Coast’ is home to VILLAGERS TEA, locally also known as Mborr Mborr. Brewed for over 300 years, the tea is undoubtedly a local and tourists' favourite. VILLAGERS TEA’s signature taste is a rich golden infusion with a refreshing, mildly mint, flavour. With The Gambia's main exports being peanuts, fish, cotton lint and palm kernels, the world has yet to experience the country’s secret.
Africa, mainly Kenya in the east, accounts for around a third of the world’s tea exports - a large number considering it produces just over eleven percent of the world’s tea. China and India, who dominate tea production, keep the majority of their produce for their own tea drinking traditions. Originating in southwest China, tea became known for its medicinal benefits and is the world's most favoured beverage after water.
Tea's global market is thriving and although there appears to be a broad range, there are actually only six types of tea; black, green, white, yellow, oolong, and pu’er. The breadth is derived from the treatment of the leaves after picking, not the plants themselves. Black teas like darjeeling, english breakfast and earl grey have been household names for decades and with such a high demand in the market, black tea accounts for 99% of Africa’s tea production. In 2019, The Gambia reported a total of 24 million US dollars worth of exported goods, with only 1.67% (US$c.4,000) accounting for tea.
VILLAGERS TEA remains the number one tea in The Gambia, and with its many health benefits, organic production and refreshing taste, it cements its position as one of the few exciting emerging tea’s from West Africa.