The air was thick with a sense of festivity and celebration as BOH, Malaysia’s largest tea producer and trusted tea grower of Cameron Highlands, marked its 95th Anniversary with a rousing community celebration at 1Utama in Petaling Jaya. Themed, ’95 and Brewing for Tomorrow’, the celebrations will be held till Sunday, 21st July.
BOH’s 95-year brand journey had its beginnings in 1929 when BOH’s founder, J.A. Russell, together with veteran planter A.B. Milne, established then Malaya’s first tea garden, BOH, in the Cameron Highlands. This was during the Great Depression and recession had set in but that did not dampen the spirit or foresight of Russell who recognised a great opportunity in the tea industry.
The name BOH was derived from ‘Bohea’, the hills in Fujian Province, known for premium tea grade in the early China tea trade.
This marked the start of a rich Malaysian tea legacy.
BOH, under the visionary leadership of its late former Chairman, Datuk Tristan Russell, modernised the art of manufacturing tea by investing in innovative techniques and infrastructure that left a lasting impact on BOH’s operations. As part of the 95th celebrations, a limited edition canister, Tristan’s Reserve, was specially commissioned to pay tribute to him.
Fast forward 95 years later, BOH has firmly etched its presence in the market. As one of the world’s few fully integrated tea companies, BOH continues to bring consumers the freshest BOH teas, direct from ‘tea bush to teacup’.
Sharing her message at the community celebration, Caroline Russell, the granddaughter of J.A. Russell and the current Executive Chairman of BOH, thanked the community for the incredible support and trust given to BOH over the decades.
“As we move ahead, BOH remains future thinking, mindful to nurture sustainabiliTEA and the connection with and between our communiTEA as we continue Brewing for Tomorrow. This is part of BOH’s core essence.
“Our fervent wish is that our communiTEA, both today and in the future, can build endearing connections and bonds as they share experiences, enhance their wellbeing and enjoy different Ummph moments together. A cup of BOH tea helps to connect us to ourselves, our friends and family, and even the Earth,” said Caroline.
Over the years, the range of BOH teas has grown extensively to cater to customer preferences both locally and abroad. These include black teas, single origin teas, green tea, iced tea mixes, instant mixed teas, herb and fruit teas as well as flavoured teas.
With a focus on brewing tea for wellness, BOH recently released Imunitea, the first Hazelnut flavour instant milk tea in Malaysia enriched with Wellmune®, a leading natural beta glucan clinically proven to help strengthen the immune system.
Currently, BOH has three tea gardens in the Cameron Highlands spanning 1,000 hectares of rich agricultural land. Collectively, the BOH, Fairlie and Sungei Palas tea gardens produce 2.8 million kilograms of tea annually. In totality, 5.0 million cups of BOH tea are served daily.
Elaborating on how BOH has embedded sustainability into its entire operations, Jason Foo, Chief Executive Officer of BOH Plantations, explained, “As a responsible tea grower, we are always seeking to perfect our tea craftsmanship. We are also equally passionate to operate without harming the environment and more importantly, to regenerate the environment. We have embarked on various initiatives across our entire operations and all these go a long way to support BOH’s promise to continue brewing for tomorrow as we remain committed to sustainabiliTEA and communiTEA.
“About 45% of our land in the Cameron Highlands are preserved as forests. This balanced ecosystem preserves biodiversity and soil integrity.
“Our responsible agricultural practices include selecting only the best teas for planting, growing anti-pest plants to reduce dependence on pesticides and planting grass to improve soil strength to prevent erosion.
“At our tea centres which are also popular tourist destinations, we use biodegradable paper straws and oxo-degradable bags while food waste is composted into fertiliser.
“We are progressively changing all our packaging to recyclable and biodegradable materials and using Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) certified paper sourced from responsibly managed forests.
“Solar panels installed at our factories also provide us with solar energy to lower our dependence on fossil fuel and to reduce carbon dioxide emission,” he shared.
One of the key highlights of the celebration was the BOH Wish Tree initiative. The community were invited to pen their thoughts on how they can join BOH in brewing a better tomorrow for Mother Earth.
For every wish card collected, BOH will contribute RM 20 to the Tropical Rainforest Conservation & Research Center (TRCRC) in support of Urban Biodiversity efforts. BOH expects to collect 1,000 cards and will channel RM 20,000 to fund the collection of 500 new seedlings. These seedlings will be nurtured by TRCRC for future tree planting exercises to enhance urban biodiversity.
Pledgers will also have the opportunity to attend a fully sponsored hands-on workshop, ‘Caring for Our Forest ‘ to be held at TRCRC’s Elmina Rainforest Knowledge Centre in Shah Alam on Saturday, October 5th, 2024 in conjunction with World Habitat Day 2024. They will have an opportunity to transplant some seedlings.
Meanwhile, BOH’s brand ambassadors, Fazura, unveiled a new collection of Fazura Tudung, specially designed for BOH’s 95th Anniversary while Azira Shafinaz will make an appearance on 20th July with a special performance.
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