However, over the last 20 years, labor costs in Taiwan have risen sharply, reducing the competitiveness of such exports. At the same time, a rapidly developing economy saw the expansion of the domestic market, and as a result tea grown in Taiwan gradually came to be sold locally as exports fell to around 20 % of total output.
不過近二十年來，台灣人工成本提高，喪失外銷競爭力，再加上經濟起飛，內需市場隨之擴大，台灣茶漸以供應內需為主，外銷量降到總產量的二成左右。