Rize tea

Rize Province is located between the Pontic Mountains and the Black Sea, and is considered to be the "wettest" corner of Turkey; this environment provides a specific ecosystem for tea growing. The land contains many mountain valleys and has been prized for its biodiversity. Tea was experimentally farmed in the Rize Province, starting in 1912 as an initiative by the Head of the Chamber of Agriculture, Hulusi Bey. But it was not until around 1945, that Turkish tea plantations in Rize Province were producing sizable crops. There are other regions of tea growing within Turkey, with Rize Province being one of the largest and more successful. By 1947, the first local tea factory was created and by 1958, the first regional tea research institute was created in Rize Province. == Labor ==

The success of tea crops in Rize brought work and wealth to a once impoverished area, as well as a large population change. Modern day harvesting of Rize tea crops has been done by migrant laborers, especially people from the Caucasian countries of Georgia and Azerbaijan. In 2021, the tea plantations were expecting 40,000 foreign workers during the harvest season however due to the COVID-19 pandemic travel restrictions, African laborers came to the region to work instead (specifically from Gambia, Senegal, Sudan and Zambia). File:Rize Tea Plantation 2005-jk.jpg|Tea plantation in Rize File:Tea plantation in Rize.jpg|Tea plantation in Rize ==References==