Tea

as a cultural product
Overview

Tea was created over 5000 years ago Said to originate in Southeast Asia It is prepared differently according to cultural preference and personal taste In 1773, protests in America involved the destruction of crates of British tea, consequently starting the American Revolution Following water, tea is the most consumed beverage in the world.

Thomas Sullivan invented the tea bag in 1980 when he distributed his tea in small muslin bags, not knowing that his customers simply dropped the bag into their hot water.

Healthy

Trendy

Social Relaxing

Representation
Tea is represented as:
A staple in our diet A drink that is relaxing, as well as beneficial to your health A beverage that doesnt discriminate based on class or financial standing A universal drink that is enjoyed in different ways according to cultural preference, for example Turkish tea, Japanese green tea

Production
Tea was supposedly discovered by Chinese Emperor Shen Nong. While boiling his drinking water, some leaves fell into the boiling water that gave off a rich aroma.

Questions that need to be addressed: How is tea produced at base level? How relevant is the production and design of packaging in relation to the representation and consumption of tea? How is this production related to its distribution and consumption?

Regulation and Consumption

The regulation of tea is hard to discuss because apart from price, and the amount of tea in a teabag (if teabags are your preference), there isnt much to talk about in the way of regulation. We are encouraged to drink tea regularly, and as it says on the Bushells website, When the Bushells is flowing, sos the conversation. Tea is consumed in a number of different ways, in Australia iced tea has become very popular as a refreshing drink. While white with two is still popular, connoisseur type tea shops such as T2 and The Tea Centre have become more prevalent.
There are approximately 200 different species of the tea plant in the world!

Research
Difficulties with research/challenges
I have had some issues finding non-academic sources due to the sheer saturation of tea related sources. There was an article in The Courier Mail on Thursday 24/5 on the Biggest Morning Tea event, which would be good to mention. I am also having difficulty determining how wide/narrow my scope should be. Should I be limiting myself to Australia and its use of tea as a cultural product?
Confirmed Sources: du Gay, Paul, et al. Doing Cultural Studies: The Story of the Sony Walkman. London: Sage, 1997. Print. Surak, Kristin. From Selling Tea to Selling Japaneseness: Symbolic Power and the Nationalization of Cultural Practices. European Journal of Sociology. Vol 52.2. Cambridge University Press: 2011. pp 175-208. Online. McCants, Anne E.C. Poor consumers as global consumers: the diffusion of tea and coffee drinking in the eighteenth century. Economic History Review. Vol 61. 2008. pp. 172-200. Print.