THE CULTURE of tea-drinking is making its way to Slovakia, according to a recent survey by the GfK Slovakia polling agency.
The survey shows that the tea market grew steadily between March and June 2006, while the number of people buying coffee fell.
GfK attributes the higher tea sales to the healthier lifestyle that Slovaks have adopted, as well as to the arrival of teahouses.
During the monitored period, the price of teabags increased 5 percent on average. During the first half of 2006, however, Slovak households bought 12 percent more tea products than in the same period last year.
Instant teas made up 47 percent of the market, while teabags accounted for 51 percent, and the remainder was loose-leaf tea.
While tea was becoming a more popular beverage in Slovakia during the first half of 2006, the coffee market shrank by five percent. Because the average price of coffee rose, however, the public spent three percent more on coffee during this period. Households are also increasingly switching from ground roasted coffee to instant coffee.
