LHASA, June 8,2021 -- For many Tibetans, tea is to them what coffee is to Westerners.

 

It is believed that tea was introduced to Tibet in the 7th century. And there has been a centuries-old trade route named Tea Horse Road that linked Tibet with the neighboring provinces of Yunnan and Sichuan.

 

As more and more locals came to realize the benefits of drinking tea, the tea culture gained in popularity in Tibet and thus became an integral part of the Tibetan life.

 

Nearly 1,400 years later, the tea industry in the region has been going ahead with full steam and playing an important role in strengthening the cultural and economic ties between Tibet and other parts of China.

 

Yi'ong, or "beautiful place" in Tibetan, bore witness to the first tea trees planted in 1963 in Tibet. Now it boasts the biggest tea farm in the region.

 

In recent years, with the tea planting techniques brought by a Guangdong team which was sent to support Tibet, tea farms in Yi'ong have seen a substantial increase in tea production.

 

The environmental-friendly tea industry has enabled more and more Tibetans to sip locally grown tea and improved their lives.

 

Since 2020, Tibet has been promoting low-fluorine tea, because too much intake of fluorine will lead to certain diseases.