Azerbaijan, Baku, May 21/Trend M. Moezzi
Tea imports have grown 10 percent in Iran last year, surpassing $195 million.
Customs data shows 51,000 tonnes of various teas, including green, black and tea bags, entered Iran last year, the Iranian Students' News Agency (ISNA) reports.
Black (fermented) tea claimed $138.5 million of the imports and ground black tea in non-retail packaging claimed $55.4 million.
The United Arab Emirates (UAE) sold Iran $77 million of tea, Sri Lanka
$66 million, India $43 million and Kenya $5 million.
Iran's own tea production has plunged 60 percent from 1997 when tea growers produced 75,000 tonnes of the plant to 2011 when only 30,000 tonnes were cultivated.
The absence of support by their government has forced thirty percent of Iran's tea factories to close down.
Iranians consume 150,000 tonnes of tea every year, with more than 75 percent of that coming from legal and illegal imports.