Chá Canto Tea

“Chá Canto” was produced by the factory of the distinguished José do Canto. This manufacturing unit began its activity in 1883 and was located on the road connecting the town of Ribeira Grande to Lagoa do Fogo, on the island of São Miguel – Azores. Among all the tea factories, this was the most emblematic both in São Miguel and in mainland Portugal, having, until the 1950s, an advertisement displayed on one of the façades of Praça dos Restauradores in Lisbon.

José do Canto was one of the main driving forces behind the introduction of tea cultivation in the Azores and also owned a tea plantation on the island of Faial. Like the Sociedade Promotora da Agricultura Micaelense, he personally hired two Chinese technicians to come to the Azores to improve tea production techniques.