00:01These crispy oolong tea leaves from the southeast county of Taitung not only give off a rich aroma, but have
00:08a unique claim to fame.
00:10They've become, according to international standards, the world's first oolong tea to have no carbon footprint.
00:31Almost every step of modern tea production emits carbon.
00:35From withering to drying to roasting, these tea farmers are trying to replace machinery with natural sunlight, following traditional processing
00:43practices.
00:45They say the transition hasn't been easy.
00:57Although the production process has become more time-consuming and unpredictable, these tea farmers and the local officials who've helped
01:04them believe it's a worthy cause.
01:18The production is proven to be carbon neutral.
01:21Any detectable carbon emissions are balanced out with investment in clean energy.
01:26It's one step forward in the Agriculture Ministry's plan to have farming reach net-zero carbon emissions by 2040.
01:33And that all starts with greener local tea production.
01:36James Lin and Irene Lin for Taiwan Plus.
Comments