Green tea
Green tea has been produced in Boseong for the past 1600 years. The earliest historical mention of green tea in Korea was from the reign of Queen Seondeok of Silla in the mid-7th century AD. Nearly two hundred years later, historical records indicate green tea seeds were planted at the foot of nearby Jirisan Mountain. During the Joseon dynasty, green tea began to fall out of favor due to its close association with Buddhism, but was still enjoyed by certain parts of the population and the Jirisan plantation continued to thrive. But it was not until the 1930s that green tea was produced on a large-scale basis. By the 1970s, huge, terraced farms as large as 250 acres became commonplace among local mountainsides. The 1980s marked the beginning of a decline in green tea demand which resulted in lower green tea output and a degradation of crops. It was then that the local government decided to reinvigorate the green tea industry by subsidizing local green tea businesses and developing newer, more efficient means to increase output and quality by collaborating with local universities and research institutes. Local media outlets also made efforts to paint Boseong as the green tea capital of the country to increase dominance in the industry by local businesses and draw in tourists from around the country.