Nayantara Palchoudhuri, appointed as the first woman chairperson of the Asian Tea Alliance
Kolkata : The Asian Tea Alliance (ATA) today announced the appointment of Ms. Nayantara Palchoudhuri as their first-ever woman Chairperson during its second summit in Kolkata. Launched in April 2019, the Asian Tea Alliance (ATA) has been convening leading tea organisations from more than seven Asian countries to make the tea sector more competitive and sustainable, at scale, and more resilient over time. ATA also intends to secure an efficient, economic, and regular production and supply of high-quality, sustainable tea to consumers with improved living and working conditions for tea workers, and a fair return for tea producers.
Earlier, on April 19, 2019, in Guizhou, China, the Asian Tea Alliance was established as a partnership between five countries that produce and consume tea, including India (Indian Tea Association), China (China Tea Marketing Association), Indonesia (Indonesian Tea Marketing Association), Sri Lanka (Sri Lanka Tea Board), and Japan (Japan Tea Association). Solidaridad Asia served as the alliance’s convenor. However, during the summit today, ATA was further expanded by the inclusion of other Asian countries that produce tea. It was also highlighted that Solidaridad being the neutral convener of the tea producers’ associations on the platform of ATA, will continue to create transformational change for the tea community & will continue to support the Secretariat’s activities for the next three years.
On receiving this prestigious role at the Asian Tea Alliance, Ms. Nayantara Palchoudhuri, said, “I am overwhelmed and excited to receive this title today. I have grown up in the World of tea & I am aware of the crisis that tea producers have been experiencing. Asian nations have a limited voice in the international governance of the tea industry despite being the largest producers and consumers of tea. As a chairman, I will undoubtedly consider this matter and work to increase the share of voice of Asian countries internationally. In the coming years, we look forward to expanding ourselves in many other Asian tea-producing countries. I’m grateful to the entire ATA team for considering me and selecting me to serve as chair.”
Prior to ATA, Ms. Nayantara has a successful track record with numerous firsts to her name. She served as the first female president of the Bengal National Chamber of Commerce and Industry, the oldest national chamber of commerce in Kolkata, which has been in existence for 120 years. She is the founder of the Enterprise Development Institute and represents the National Executive Committee of FICCI (the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce & Industry). Besides, she also chairs the National Expert Committee of Women at the Indian Chamber of Commerce.
Nearly after 140 years of the Indian Tea Association’s establishment, she became the first lady chairperson. Most recently she has been elected as the first lady to lead the Tea Research Association, which has been around for 100 years. After being the first female Governor of Rotary International in this region, she actively participated in various NGOs and CSR initiatives. Furthermore, she is on the board of many well-known, listed, and multinational companies. She is the Consul of Norway in the Eastern Region and is responsible for strengthening Indo-Norwegian partnerships in Eastern Region. She is involved in many cultural and Academic Institutions and created history when she broke another glass ceiling by becoming the first lady member of the century-old Calcutta Club.
She aims to expand the domestic market for Indian teas, encourage youth to drink tea, especially as a health beverage, and find new international markets for the wide range of Indian teas. She believes that contemporary applications are essential to a sustainable future, and research into artificial intelligence applications holds enormous promise for the industry. She has taken actions to interest and engage the GEN-NEXT to advance the industry to put innovative ideas into practice and develop a future road map.
During the summit, the following objectives of ATA were highlighted:
- a) To develop cooperation amongst its members to promote efficient, economic, and regular production and trade of sustainable black and green tea adhering to national sustainability standards, national laws, and UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)
- b) To make policy recommendations to safeguard the economic and business interests of the small and big tea-producing organisations and create a level-playing field for the producers
- c) To support the increase in consumption of sustainable green and black tea by organising joint events and enhancing consumer awareness
- d) To collate, collect and disseminate statistical data, research, and other information on tea production and consumption in Asia
- e) To provide support to Members and non-Members relating to quality, technical, financial, market, and other business issues in the tea-producing countries and – when appropriate – globally
- f) To facilitate the creation of strategic alliances between small- and medium-sized companies of the member associations