BOH Tea Plantation in Bukit Cheeding, Banting, Selangor
Growing up drinking BOH tea, my recent visit to BOH’s lowland tea plantation in Bukit Cheeding, Selangor, was an eye-opener. The leading tea grower in Malaysia, BOH owns four tea plantations (or tea gardens) in the country. Besides Bukit Cheeding, the other three are Boh, Sungei Palas and Fairlie, all located in Cameron Highlands.
BOH’s most famous tea gardens are of course those in Cameron Highlands due to their scenic rolling hills. However, BOH tea from all plantations are transported to Bukit Cheeding because this is where the leaves are packed to be sold. Bukit Cheeding is BOH’s only packing plant.
Bukit Cheeding also has the distinction of being the world’s only lowland tea garden with tea plants grown under oil palm trees, where these trees serve as protection for the tea plants against direct sunlight.
Because tea leaves wilt so quickly, they have to be processed and withered for sixteen hours at their respective plantations before they are transported to Bukit Cheeding. At this 1,300-acre tea garden and packing plant, more than a hundred tonnes of tea dust are packed monthly, in addition to a hundred tonnes of tea leaves and another eighty tonnes of tea bag dust (or 40 million tea bags at 2g per bag).
BOH only produces black tea. Green tea and the natural (or natural identical) flavours used in their tea blends are imported. From these, BOH boasts some thirty different blends, including instant tea. These are sold through 200 different products (or packing types). The proper term is: Stock Keeping Unit (SKU).
Approximately ten percent of the products are exported, mainly to Japan, Germany, Denmark, Taiwan, as well as neighbouring countries, Thailand and Singapore. BOH products are also sold online via Amazon.com for the USA market. And of course, all products are available at BOH’s Sungei Palas showroom in Cameron Highlands.
Tea is a valuable commodity but maintaining the tea plantation and harvesting the tea (two leaves and the bud) are labour-intensive jobs. Harvesting cycle is every 20 days, so you can imagine! Good thing that tea plants can last forever. At Bukit Cheeding, about thirty workers take care of the tea garden while the factory runs with 60 staff per shift.
It is interesting to note that tea leaves, once processed, have no expiry date. They can be kept for a very long time, the longer the better. They have to be kept air tight, though. Tea, in fact, is not only a beverage. It can be used to absorb whatever unpleasant smell in the room, or cupboard, for example.
BOH’s Bukit Cheeding packing plant is closed to the public. However, an educational tour could be arranged through the Kuala Langat District Council For more information about BOH, log on to the company’s official website HERE.
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Nice boh tea tour, hope I can visit and follow the tea tour also
I like boh tea.. Taste nice.. I dunno banting got plantation.. Went the one in Cameron je..
enjoy a great tour!! visit their tea plantation at Cameron before. it’s always my favourites place.
It’s been so long since I visited their plantation (when I was a child)… now I realize it’s time to bring my children there.. hehe
Such a Good place to be visited. Thanks for sharing, i plan to bring my children there for an education tour.
Aww I had no idea that they have a plantation here in selangor aswell. I visited their tea plantation in Cameron just a month ago! It was amazing there. I love the premium blend of BOH tea.
do drop by… GreenStory
wow! didn;t know that after process they dont have an expiry date! thats really intresting!
I used to went to Cameron Highlands for this.
Don’t know Selangor got this too.
oh yeah… lets have a variety of BOH instant tea products ^^
i do love tea once a while, tho am more a coffee drinker, but love going to any tea plantation coz it’s always scenic and lovely
huwaaa… i love boh peach tea and apple..
so sedap.. tahniah BOH.. d produxts really so gd and quality..
I love their green tea. I visited boh plantation very long time ago in CH.
Please kindly advice whom to be contacted to request for permission to go for a field trip with 3-4 kids. Thank u
Hi Vanes,
Do contact BOH directly.
http://www.boh.com.my/
I like to visit plantation tea boh
Many years ago my uncle, Rodney Boyce used to manage the Bukit Cheeding Estate!
That’s lovely to know, Berin. Thanks for coming by.