Muyu Green Tea

Muyu Green Tea

Muyu Green Tea is a product with geographical indication status for agricultural products.

　　Tea is the “national drink” of the Chinese nation. Along with human progress, the elegant and noble tea culture has a long and enduring history. Muyu Town is a major tea-producing area in the Shennongjia Forest District. The Tang Dynasty scholar Lu Yu (733–804), in his *Classic of Tea*, wrote: “Tea as a beverage originated with the Divine Farmer (Shennong)”; “Tea is a fine plant of the south, found in the Bashan and Xichuan regions, where some trees grow so large that it takes two people to encircle them with their arms.” The *Shennong’s Classic of Materia Medica* records: “Shennong collected herbs to cure the people’s illnesses. One day he encountered seventy-two poisons, but was cured by tea.” In Muyu Town, Shennongjia, many beautiful legends about tea are still passed down today: Wang Zhaojun, in her youth, often picked tea leaves in the tea gardens by the Xiangxi River (now within the territory of Muyu Town) and learned tea-picking songs from the local tea-picking girls. Zhaojun also shared her personally roasted fresh tea with sisters from nearby villages, and those who drank her tea grew more and more beautiful with time. According to the modern *Annals of Shennongjia*, in 1977, the total tea plantation area in Muyu was 3,735 mu, yielding 30,900 kilograms of tea annually. Due to backward production techniques, the commercialization rate was low. After 1985, with greater emphasis on tea garden renovation, tea production gradually developed. In 1986, under the guidance of the Fruit and Tea Research Institute of Hubei Academy of Agricultural Sciences, several premium Muyu Green Tea brands were developed, such as “Shennong Qifeng” and “Shennong Bifeng.” Among them, “Shennong Qifeng” was designated as an “Hubei Famous Tea” by the Provincial Department of Agriculture and Animal Husbandry in 1992. He Kang, the then Minister of Agriculture, praised it highly after tasting it and personally inscribed the words “Shennong Qifeng.” In 2007, during an agricultural wild germplasm resource survey in Shennongjia, wild tea tree communities were discovered in the deep mountains of Muyu Town. Local elders over eighty recalled that there used to be many wild large tea trees, which farmers used as beams or split into rafters for building houses. The long history of tea production and the touching stories from the tea gardens fully demonstrate that Shennongjia has a long history of tea cultivation and is one of the birthplaces of tea culture. Currently, the total tea planting area in the Shennongjia Forest District is nearly 20,000 mu, with over 70% concentrated in Muyu Town. The harvestable area of Muyu Green Tea is 12,000 mu, with an annual output of around 100 tons. Muyu Green Tea comes in two types: bud tea and pan-fired green tea. Bud tea (commercially known as “Shennong Qifeng”) features flat-shaped leaves covered with white pekoe, a glossy emerald color, a lasting chestnut aroma, bright yellow-green infusion, tender and even yellow-green leaves, and a mellow, sweet aftertaste. Pan-fired green tea consists of one bud with one or two leaves, with a strip-like shape, tightly rolled dark green dry leaves, a delicate fragrance, yellow-green infusion, a fresh and mellow taste, and bright yellow-green leaves. Muyu Green Tea is rich in natural selenium, with water extract ≥35%, tea polyphenols ≥12%, and amino acids ≥4.0%. Grown in the high mountain clouds, good tea comes from Muyu Town, which has an average altitude of 1,200 meters, forest coverage of 88.6%, year-round misty conditions, no industrial or mining enterprises, no “three wastes” pollution, fresh air, clean water, and fertile soil. The superior ecological environment gives Muyu Green Tea its unique quality. The product is highly favored by tourists and sells well in major cities such as Wuhan, Shanghai, Beijing, and Shenzhen, as well as in countries and regions including Japan, South Korea, and Taiwan. On December 30, 2013, Muyu Green Tea was certified by the Ministry of Agriculture, with registration certificate number: AGI01323.

　　Muyu Green Tea is a specialty of Muyu Town in the Shennongjia Forest District, Hubei Province. With white pekoe covering the dry leaves, a glossy emerald color, a lasting chestnut aroma, bright yellow-green infusion, tender and even yellow-green leaves, and a mellow, sweet aftertaste, Muyu Green Tea boasts distinctive quality characteristics. It is a nationally protected product with geographical indication status for agricultural products.

　　Muyu Town is located in the southern part of Shennongjia, at an altitude of 1,200 meters, with an average annual temperature of 11.6°C, a hottest monthly mean of 22°C, an extreme high of 33°C, a coldest monthly mean of 1.2°C, and an extreme low of -10.6°C. It has a frost-free period of 217 days and annual rainfall of 1,000 mm, featuring a typical northern subtropical monsoon humid climate, making it pleasant all year round and suitable for long-term residence. It borders Xingshan County to the southeast, Badong County to the southwest, Xiagu Township of the Shennongjia Forest District to the west, Hongping Town to the northwest, and Songluo Township to the northeast.

　　Shennongjia enjoys a unique geographical location and superior ecological environment, making it an ideal place for developing green and organic foods. Muyu Green Tea, with white pekoe covering the dry leaves, a glossy emerald color, a lasting chestnut aroma, bright yellow-green infusion, tender and even yellow-green leaves, and a mellow, sweet aftertaste, boasts distinctive quality characteristics.

　　In 2013, the “Muyu Green Tea” application submitted by the Shennongjia Deep Mountain Tea Industry Professional Cooperative of Hubei’s Shennongjia Forest District passed the review of the Agricultural Product Quality and Safety Center of the Ministry of Agriculture and expert evaluation, leading to its implementation under the national agricultural product geographical indication registration and protection system.

　　Geographic Scope

　　The production area of Muyu Green Tea covers the entire current administrative region of Muyu Town in Shennongjia. Muyu Town is a provincial-level tourism star town in Hubei Province, located in the southern part of the Shennongjia Forest District, with geographical coordinates between 110°21′E and 110°36′E, and 31°19′N and 31°31′N. It spans a total area of 437 square kilometers and governs eight administrative villages: Qingtian Village, Muyu Village, Xiaodangyang Village, Qingfeng Village, Honghuaping Village, Maohu Village, Sanduihe Village, and Jiuchong Village; and two neighborhood committees: Muyuping Neighborhood Committee and Honghuaping Neighborhood Committee. The elevation ranges from 600 to 1,400 meters. It borders Xingshan County of Yichang to the south, Hongping Town of the forest district to the north, Songluo Township of the forest district to the east, and Xiagu Ping Ethnic Minority Autonomous Township of the forest district to the west. The current tea planting area is 12,000 mu, with a total output of around 100 tons.