Instant Darjeeling tea

Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Kharagpur is about to reveal a secret method to brew instant Darjeeling tea, just like coffee.The IIT’s food and agriculture department is currently in business talks to transfer the secret recipe for instant soluble tea -- it won an Indian patent last year -- to two Bangalore-based tea companies, and one from Ooty.With this process, a kilogram of fresh tealeaves can yield 25 to 30 grams of soluble tea powder, and 230 grams black tea. The total cost for companies to produce the instant tea would be about Rs 1 lakh —- the cost of setting up a grinder, a temperature-controlled chamber and a refrigerated dryer.