Tea manufacturing is normally carried out in two ways, (i) CTC and (ii) Orthodox. CTC refers to the Crush, Tear & Curl process where the withered green leaves are passed in-between two rollers rotating in opposite directions. There is complete maceration of the leaves. Enzymatic action is higher in the CTC type of manufacture. In orthodox type of manufacture, the withered leaves are rolled on specially designed orthodox rollers which twist and crush the leaves thereby rupturing the cells.

The maceration is less as against CTC processing. But this process results in teas with good flavour and aroma. Steps in CTC tea manufacture includes, withering of harvested crop, green leaf shifting, reconditioning, rolling, fermentation, drying, grading & sorting and packing. In Orthodox tea making method, the tea leaves go through four stages: withering, rolling, oxidation and drying.