Workers process tea leaves at a workshop in Ningbo, East China's Zhejiang province. [Photo/cnnb.com.cn]

In Beilun district of Ningbo, more than 80 farmers wearing masks were busy picking teas leaves in a tea garden on the morning of Feb 22.

The tea garden, run by Ningbo Beilun Mengjun Tea Co, is the first in the city to resume operations amid the novel coronavirus outbreak, as the spring tea harvest season is just around the corner.

Farmers have returned to work in the garden for a week, and each is able to pick 50 kilograms of tea leaves per day.

Unlike previous years, the tea pickers must wear masks and have their temperatures taken twice a day to avoid cross-infection.

Lu Mengjun, the company's general manager, said most workers returning to work are local residents, and the company may face a shortage of labor as the peak season comes in early March.

He revealed that the company has seen a stark rise in production costs due to the epidemic; he plans to make up for the loss by increasing production of mid-range black tea, among other things.

The tea planting area in Ninghai county of Ningbo stands at around 54,000 mu (3,600 hectares). In previous years, more than 4,000 tea pickers were needed during the peak period, two-thirds of whom were from outside the city. At present, there is a shortage of more than 3,000 tea pickers in Ninghai.

In a bid to solve the problem, the local authorities have started to recruit tea pickers from the surrounding areas, including Xinchang and Taizhou.

According to Chen Wei, general manager of Ningbo Wanghai Tea Co, tea pickers can earn 200-300 yuan per day, and up to tens of thousands of yuan per month, depending on their speed.

"The labor shortage is the most prominent problem right now. Enterprises are encouraged to tap more local labor resources and share employees," said an official at the local agricultural department.

In the meantime, some local tea producers are taking the epidemic as an opportunity and have developed related tea products.

A tea product developed by Ningbo Wulongtan Tea Co is able to reduce one’s body temperature and dispel phlegm.

Over 500 such tea products have been sent to medics and social security officers who are on the front lines of the anti-virus battle.