Essays: Tea...

The Shan plateau is nestled in the southern foothills of the Burmese Himalayas. One of the oldest tea-producing regions in the world, the plateau is home to tea plantations that account for nearly 70,000 hectares of planted land and provide work for nearly 500,000 Palaung people. Despite being the nation’s largest regional producer of tea, the local industry faces many ongoing challenges. In 2011 harvest prices plummeted by 50 percent, forcing many laborers to look elsewhere, often towards China, for income.