Birmingham's Typhoo tea has been acquired by one of India's largest tea producers in a deal valued at £80 million.
Apeejay Surrendra Group said it planned to increase investment in Typhoo after agreeing to buy the business from Branston Pickle maker Premier Foods.
Calcutta-based Apeejay has a plantation area of 30,000 acres supplying many of the world's major tea brands, including Typhoo.
The company will take over Typhoo's tea blending and packing facility which employs 250 people at Moreton, Wirral.
It will be also be buying Premier's other tea businesses London Fruit & Herb, Lift and QT.
Founded in 1903 by Birmingham grocer John Summer, Typhoo merged with Schweppes in 1968 and its factory in Birmingham closed in 1978 before the brand was sold to management buy-out Premier Brands and evolved into its current owner in 1989.
Last year, the tea business achieved sales of £70.2 million and operating profits of £11.2 million last year.
Premier described Typhoo as a great brand but added that it would benefit from the focus and investment offered by a dedicated tea business.
With British tea sales declining by around one per cent a year, Premier Foods said it wanted to focus on the rest of the company's stable of quintessentially British foods.
Chief executive Robert Schofield has recently been ploughing money into developing lines such as a new range of Branston pickles, Ambrosia custard snack pots, and Hartley's fruit smoothies.
Premier said it would use the proceeds of the sale to reduce debt.
Apeejay is India's third largest exporter of tea, is among the largest producers in India with a workforce of over 40,000 and 17 estates producing over 21 million kilograms of tea.
The company already sells three of its single estate teas - Sessa, Pengaree and Khobong - in Harrods and premium tea boutiques around the world.
The acquisition mirrors a deal struck in 2000 when India's Tata paid £271 million for the Tetley brand.
Typhoo ranks behind PG Tips and Tetley in the UK tea market. An estimated 6.4 million cups of Typhoo are drunk every day with Premier selling 23 million packets annually.
Apeejay said it did not anticipate any redundancies as a result of the transaction.
Chairman Karan Paul said: "The business has strong growth potential, a well-run factory and a committed and experienced workforce.
"We are confident that our commitment to increasing the investment both behind the brands and own label business combined with our extensive tea experience will enable us to build market share and further grow the business."
