Afternoon tea is battling against price hikes

By Cara Sulieman

THE humble cup of tea used to be a staple of the British diet until reports surfaced last week that its price was set to rocket due to a shortage of tealeaves.

But in the face of a tea crisis, one hotel chain is doing everything it can to encourage people to “indulge” in a budget cream tea offer.

A combination of drought in three pf the largest tea-producing countries – Sri Lanka, India and Kenya – and the weak pound mean that the import is costing the producers of high street brands more and more.

Tea, which is sold in dollars, has rocketed from $1.76 a kilo in 2007 to $3 a kilo in recent months, mainly due to the smaller amounts being produced.