坪林茶戶長:茶農､茶師､茶商的技藝養成與生命風格

Abstract

坪林茶鄉是北臺灣少有的單一茶產業鄉鎮，因位於水源保護區之內，保有了家戶各自獨立經營的傳統，由茶戶長作為茶事業實際的經營者。本研究關注在半個多世紀的臺灣與坪林茶產業的變遷裡頭，地方的茶戶長如何在隨著城鄉發展與在地產業的變化，將在地技藝形塑成為地方特產，並兼具小農與小頭家的特質，扮演著產銷體系裡頭的不同角色。本研究採行的研究方法為透過行動研究的歷程，進行一手的參與式觀察、深度訪談，並搭配二手的內容分析與論述分析。本研究發現，坪林茶產業裡頭有著茶農、茶師、與茶商三種角色；每一位茶戶長，扮演了地方茶產銷鍊上不同的角色，而每一種角色都有他們獨到的技藝，並各自開展出特殊的網絡關係，成為獨當一面的經營者；此外茶戶長在角色的重疊、轉換過程中，相互競逐茶葉的技藝、品質、利益、與榮耀，更進一步形塑了各自的獨特性。而這些茶戶長的生命風格，就展現在不同角色的技藝與網絡之中。

Locating in the northern Taiwan, Pinglin is the only tea town with all of the area covered by traditional tea industry in Taiwan. Due to the restricted regulations of the Feicsui Fresh Watershed Protection Zone, neither industries nor developments could establish in the entire Pinglin area. Therefore, Pinglin is the only tea region in Taiwan with small household size tea entrepreneurs everywhere. Every head of a tea household could potentially be the key person to manage their own tea business, that is “tea household entrepreneur”(茶戶長). Within this context in mind, each tea household entrepreneur produces his characteristics of tea flavors and styles that could be distinguished from others. Based on Qualitative methods, I examine how local tea household entrepreneurs create the Pinglin tea crafts to be local special products within the struggles of the rapid industrialization in the global tea trade and the declination of Taiwan tea exporting business.