TRA Tocklai

What TRA Tocklai does

TRA Tocklai (Tea Research Association) is a non-profit registered society, established in its current form in 1964 with origins dating to 1911, operating as the oldest and largest tea research institute globally. It is headquartered in Kolkata, India (113 Park Street), with its principal research campus at the Tocklai Tea Research Institute in Jorhat, Assam, and a regional R&D Centre at Nagrakata, West Bengal. The organization conducts and promotes scientific research across all aspects of tea cultivation (propagation, pest and disease management, irrigation, climate change adaptation) and tea manufacturing (withering, oxidation, drying, grading), and has released 153 proprietary tea clones developed through garden selection.

TRA's product and service portfolio comprises five main streams. First, membership subscriptions from tea estates and associate companies, tiered at Rs 35,000/year for companies under Rs 5 crore turnover and Rs 70,000/year for larger members. Second, TLabs laboratory testing services operated at two NABL accredited (ISO/IEC 17025:2017) facilities in Jorhat and Kolkata, equipped with LC-MS/MS, GC-MS/MS, ICP-MS, AAS, GC, and HPLC instruments, charging Rs 240-Rs 8,999 per test across parameters including tea quality, soil, water, fertilizer, pesticide residues, and FSSAI food safety compliance. Third, a catalog of 14 technical e-books and publications (Planters Handbook, Tea Field Management, Tea Manufacturing Manual, Tea Tasting Manual, climate and pest bulletins, clone monographs) priced from Rs 472 to Rs 3,060. Fourth, training and diploma services including the Diploma in Tea Management course. Fifth, certification programs (Trustea sustainability certification, TRA GAP GMP) and digital services (online test booking, e-commerce shop).

The organization serves approximately 1,076 large tea estates occupying 341,049 hectares and more than 200,000 small tea growers across eight tea-producing regions of Northeast India, delivered through 10 advisory branches. Strategic partners include the Tea Board of India, Government of Assam, FAO Inter Governmental Group on Tea (where India assumed the chair in January 2024), Hindustan Unilever, IIT Guwahati, and various government science agencies (DST, DBT). Leadership comprises Ms. Nayantara Palchoudhuri (Chairperson) and Dr. A. Babu (Director). Revenue is generated through membership subscriptions, fee-based testing, publication sales, and sponsored research projects, with figures not publicly disclosed.

Name

TRA Tocklai

Legal name

Tea Research Association

Website

https://tocklai.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

1911

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

251–500 employees

Short description

TRA Tocklai is India's non-profit Tea Research Association, conducting century-long R&D on tea cultivation and processing, serving 1,076 estates and 200,000+ small growers across Northeast India via 10 advisory branches, NABL accredited testing labs, publications, and certification programs.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Agricultural Research and Tea Industry Services

NAICS

Scientific Research and Development Services (5417), Testing Laboratories and Services (54138)

SIC

Services-Commercial Physical & Biological Research (8731), Services-Testing Laboratories (8734)

akta.pro primary industry

Tea Processing (Withering, Rolling, Fermentation, Drying) (AFAFADAF)

akta.pro secondary industries

Tea (Leaf, Bagged, Instant, Concentrates) (CRADAHAE), Tea Blending & Flavoring (AFAFADAG)

Keywords

• Tea research services
• Agricultural testing labs
• Plantation advisory
• Tea clone development
• Crop science publications

Headquarters

HQ city

Kolkata

HQ country

India

HQ region

Asia

Offices3 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Infrastructure, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales

Revenue model

1. Membership Subscriptions: TRA generates revenue through membership fees from Ordinary Members (tea estates) and Associate Members. Joining fee is Rs 2,000 for Associate Membership. Annual fees are Rs 35,000 for companies with turnover under Rs 5 Crores and Rs 70,000 for companies with turnover over Rs 5 Crores.
2. Laboratory Testing Services: TLabs provides fee-based testing services for tea, soil, water, fertilizers, pesticides, and bio-pesticide formulations. Testing is available at Jorhat and Kolkata locations with NABL accreditation.
3. Publications and E-books: Sale of technical publications including the Planters Handbook, Tea Field Management, Tea Manufacturing Manual, Tea Tasting Manual, bulletins on Integrated Pest and Disease Management, clone monographs, and climate change adaptation guides. Prices range from ₹472 to ₹3,060 per publication.
4. Training and Diploma Programs: Diploma in Tea Management course with entrance test-based admission for July-December batches. Professional training programs for tea industry personnel.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Tea Research Association (TRA Tocklai) conducts and promotes scientific research on tea cultivation, manufacturing, chemistry, and quality, delivering results to the Indian tea industry. Its commercial offerings comprise NABL-accredited TLabs testing services for tea, soil, water, fertilizers, pesticides and food safety, a portfolio of technical eBooks/manuals, and a Diploma in Tea Management along with professional training courses, all delivered through a membership and advisory network serving tea estates and small growers.

Product overview

TRA Tocklai (Tea Research Association) operates as a research institution providing a portfolio of products and services to the Indian tea industry. The offerings include: (1) TLabs Testing Services - NABL accredited laboratory testing for tea, soil, water, fertilizers, and pesticide residues; (2) Online Test Booking - a web-based platform for scheduling laboratory tests; (3) Technical eBooks - publications covering tea field management, manufacturing, tasting, climate adaptation, pest/disease management, and clone monographs; (4) Training services including Diploma in Tea Management. The core service is the laboratory testing network at Jorhat and Kolkata, while the eBook catalog provides technical knowledge resources for tea professionals.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• TLabs: Network of NABL accredited (ISO/IEC 17025:2017) laboratories at Tocklai and Kolkata, providing tea testing and analytical services.
• TRA GAP GMP
• Trustea

Products and services

• TLabs Testing Services

Quantifiable outcome

• Sustains productivity and quality of tea plantations through climate change adaptation strategies

Named customers3 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature4 records

Partnerships

Nine partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• FAO (Food and Agriculture Organisation)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 31 January 2024TRA played a key role in hosting the 25th Session of the FAO-IGG on Tea in Guwahati, with 77 delegates from 25 countries. India assumed Chair from the UK for two years.
• Government of AssamcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 29 January 2024Government of Assam partnered with TRA and Tea Board of India to host the Bicentenary Assam Tea International Conference (BATIC 2024) as part of Assam tea industry's bicentennial celebrations.
• Indian Institute of Technology GuwahatiminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 5 July 2023IIT Guwahati collaborated on the D.N. Barua Memorial Tea Colloquium 2023, with Prof. (Dr.) Parameswar Iyer delivering the 6th D.N. Barua Memorial Lecture.
• Tea Board of IndiacoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerTea Board of India collaborates with TRA on industry initiatives including hosting the Bicentenary Assam Tea International Conference (BATIC 2024) and supporting tea industry research and development activities.
• Various Agricultural and Educational InstitutionsminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerResearch on pharmacological properties of black tea is carried out in collaboration with Kolkata and other institutes across India, including IITs and agricultural universities.
• Hindustan Unilever LimitedminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerHindustan Unilever Limited sponsors projects at TRA Tocklai, including equipment procurement under HUL-sponsored projects.
• Department of Science and Technology (DST)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerDST sponsors research projects at TRA through National Tea Research Foundation (NTRF) funded initiatives.
• DBT (Department of Biotechnology)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerDBT sponsors biotechnology research projects at TRA's North Bengal R&D Centre in Nagrakata.
• Government of AssamminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerGovernment of Assam funds projects including Photographic Digitization of the Faunal Historical Collection at Tocklai TRI.

Scale indicators6 records

Recent moves8 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• Tea Research Foundation of Kenya: Kenya's industry-funded tea research foundation serving East African tea growers with research, advisory, and technical services. Comparable as a tea-specific research and extension organization funded by industry members in a major tea-producing country.
• Tea Research Institute of Sri Lanka: National tea research institute of Sri Lanka conducting R&D on tea cultivation, processing, and quality assessment. Highly comparable in scope (cultivation through processing research) and membership-based service model to estates and smallholders.
• UPASI Tea Research Foundation: South India tea research foundation operating as the principal counterpart to TRA Tocklai for the tea industry in South India. Directly comparable as a member-funded tea research institute offering advisory, testing, training, and clone development services to regional tea estates.

Broad incumbents

• Eurofins Scientific: Major international testing services group with broad food, agricultural, and environmental testing capabilities including pesticide residue and food safety testing. Comparable as a competitor in the analytical testing services TRA offers through TLabs.
• Intertek: Global testing, inspection, and certification provider offering agricultural and food safety laboratory services. Comparable as a broad incumbent competing for tea, soil, and food safety testing business that TRA's TLabs serves.
• SGS Société Générale de Surveillance: Global leader in testing, inspection, and certification services including food and agricultural testing. Comparable as a competing laboratory testing provider for tea quality, pesticide residues, and food safety compliance.
• Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR): India's apex public agricultural research body overseeing multiple crop-specific research institutes including those for plantation crops. Comparable as a publicly funded agricultural R&D institution but with broader multi-crop scope rather than tea specialization.

Emerging players

• CABI (Centre for Agriculture and Biosciences International): International not-for-profit organization providing agricultural research, pest management, and plant health advisory services. Comparable as a member-supported agricultural research entity with overlapping focus on pest/disease management and crop science advisory services.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat6 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/TRATocklai
• Facebookfacebook.com/tocklai
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/tea-research-association-tra-

Compliance1 record

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles2 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about TRA Tocklai