ZHENGAN TIANCI / SHANGBA TEA GARDEN

The Shangba tea garden, operated by Zhengan Tianci Ecological Technology Company, is located in the Chinese province of Guizhou, in Zhengan county, in the municipality of Shangba. The municipality Shangba consists of three small villages with about 500 people and belongs to the administrative area of the small town Banzhu, which has about 30,000 inhabitants. The complete county of Zhengan has around 600.000 inhabitants. The district is characteristically rural. There are no noteworthy industrial companies in the surroundings.

The organic certified Shangba tea garden has a very large area of approx. 287 hectares and is located at an altitude between 1400 and 1600 meters above sea level.

Population

In the vicinity of the tea garden, there are more or less 280 households. Traditionally, three generations lived under the same roof in the rural regions: the grandparents, one or two couples and one to two kids. With the great economic growth of China, the situation in the countryside changed. Today, far less young people live in the villages. The percentage of people aged 55 years or more increased significantly. Many young adults live and work in the far located big cities, because they find there better income opportunities and a more interesting life.

Although the ratio of young adults and families in the area of Shangba is higher than in the rest of rural China due to the favourable income opportunities, in the villages still live many grandparents with their grandchildren. The parents, employed elsewhere, normally see their kids only once a year for the Chinese New Year, also called Spring Festival, when almost all Chinese people visit their hometowns.

The villagers are essentially self-sufficient. They grow vegetables, cereals, tobacco etc., they breed sheep, goats and cattle, keep pigs and chickens and/or pursue further activities in contractual employments.

The majority of the residents have a school education. China has a nine-year long compulsory education. In Shangba there is an elementary school from the first to the sixth grade. This school is located about 2.5 km far from the tea garden and can be reached easily. Older pupils from seventh to ninth grade attend a boarding school in the town of Banzhu, about 10 kilometres far from Shangba. These students generally spend the week in the boarding school and come back home during the weekends. School attendance is free, parents only pay for the accommodation at the boarding school, teaching materials and books. Secondary schools or university studies have to be paid for and were unaffordable for most rural families just a few years ago. Today, families have income because the young work in the city and the old in the tea farms, for example. These families can afford to send 1 to 2 children to secondary schools or even to study.

Zhengan Tianci as employer

The agricultural land of the Shangba tea garden is not leased to individual small farmers, as it was common in China, but owned by the state Shangba Educated Youth Farm, in which young intellectuals from all Chinese cities had to fulfil their agricultural service in the past. Zhengan Tianci rented the Shangba tea garden from the Shangba Educated Youth Farm.

The Zhengan Tianci company employs exclusively workers from the surrounding villages. Like all other Chinese companies, Zhengan Tianci is obliged to observe the statutory labour law. In China, all employees in a company have a statutory entitlement to a regular work contract. This applies to both, long and short term employees. You can find more information on this in our text on labour law and social laws in China. 

Independent small farmers, who are not employed as regular workers in a company, are neither protected by the Chinese nor by the international labour law (ILO standards).

The Zhengan Tianci Company employs 24 permanent workers in the final processing factory and 66 in other areas of the business. In addition, there are about 120 workers in the Shangba tea garden, of which 100 are seasonal workers with a temporary contract. The wages of the company Zhengan Tianci are above the legal minimum wage level.

Permanent employees of Zhengan Tianci receive at least 4500 Yuan (ca. 610 Euro) per month.

Temporary workers of Zhengan Tianci receive at least 91 to 272 Yuan (ca. 12.30 to 36.90 Euro) per working day. For 22 working days per month that amounts to a total of 2000 to 6000 Yuan (ca. 271 to 814 Euro) per month.

Living standards

If one considers that the people live in their own houses, do not have to pay rent, pursue agriculture for private sustenance and obtain additional income from the selling of their products, the live of the people in the Shangba tea garden is not bad. The economic success of modern China has reached now also the rural areas, provided that the people are employed by a company as it is the case with Zhengan Tianci.

Fairbiotea development partnership

The development partnership with Fairbiotea supports the sustainable development in the areas of ecology, economy and welfare. This includes the development of an organic nutrient cycle, nature and wildlife preservation, fair working conditions and the development of economic profitability as the fundament for the financial feasibility of sustainable measures. In addition, hygiene and quality management, sustainability certifications and the implementation of their contents are also equally part of the development plan as the declared willingness for a close cooperation between Zhengan Tianci, Shangba tea garden, Fairbiotea and the responsible third country organic control body (for further security checks and for the control of the compliance with the development plan).

Hygiene and quality management for the European market

Zhengan Tianci as the operator of the Shangba tea garden is also responsible for the compliance with EU statutory food regulations. If necessary, the company must adopt and finance corrective measures in hygiene and quality management, in order to fulfil the EU regulations at all times.

In the production process at the Zhengan Tianci tea factory, electricity is used as much as possible and the use of wood and coal is limited to a minimum. Therefore, contamination of the tea with combustion residues detrimental to health is reduced. The central final processing factory processes, standardises and cleans the tea. Only trained staff is employed.

For small holder businesses, this kind of management, sustainable development and organic security is not realisable.

Updated 2 May 2023