To preserve quality, local and national tasting competitions are carried out regularly, and the list of the year’s ten cups ranking on top is published every year. These famous teas called ming cha are exclusive and very expensive, they are highly appreciated by the home market and the over-seas Chinese diaspora, and are making strides in attracting Western tea fans. There are premium cups from both the oolong tea and the white tea categories that appear on the ‘ming cha’ list every year, without exception.

It’s noteworthy that today, in China, there are also oolong and white teas that are grown in non traditional areas, mostly newly developed cultivars, which do not have an origin territory appellation and are therefore considerably cheaper and more accessible for non-Chinese customers. It should also be noted that the manufacturing skills and some of the more recent plant varietals have been introduced outside China, namely in Vietnam, Indonesia, India, and also in some East African countries, among others, where certain tea gardens have begun producing some oolong and white teas.

The vicinity between China and Taiwan, with many tea farmers having crossed the Taiwan strait in the 18th and 19th centuries, taking their tea bushes with them on their boats, and since then developed a thriving and extremely premium high mountain and coastal oolong tea production. Based on their continental China heritage and also newly developed cross bred varietals by the intensely active Taiwanese Tea and Beverage Research Station (TTBRS) in Nantou County, these exclusive Oolong tea cups are rivalling fully with those of China’s Fujian province.

3 Taiwan A li shan high mountain oolong tea. Credit: Barbara Dufrêne

The Complex Oolong Tea Category

All tea experts and tea lovers agree that this tea family is extremely complex, because of the incredible number of cultivars, each with unique flavour characteristics, a statement fully supported by French veteran tea experts, Katrin Rougeventre and Vivien Messavant, aka Zhong Yun Jing. The various manufacturing processes are often still carried out by family tea masters applying the wisdom of many generations. All this input generates an unbelievable amount of leaf shapes cup colours and, most importantly, endless shades of fragrance and aromas, ranging from warm and comforting to mineral and
metallic, offering many different flowery, fruity, spicy and woody notes.

This tea category was reintroduced to the Western markets at the beginning of the millennium and was so different from the well-established green and black teas, with its semi oxidised leaf, that they had to be named first.
Some called them ‘blue-green’, or qing cha and finally the denomination ‘oolong or wulong’, meaning ‘black dragon’ spread and was commonly adopted, with reference to the black and twisted leaf of the deeply oxidised Fujian rock teas. The many different bush varietals harvested in continental China and in Taiwan are genuine to the local lands, to which research has added on more through cross-breeding.

These many cultivars and varietals are grown in several oolong territories, all with their specific origin appellation, namely in Fujian and Guangdong province and in Taiwan’s Central Mountain range and coastal plains.

Additional quality criteria add on more specificity, such as the premium plucking time and picking way and the manufacturing process, with either ball shape rolled or twisted leaf and either low, medium or high oxidation.

Oolong teas can be stored and the aged teas of 20 to 25 years will then be basket toasted again to
bring out their wide range of delicious fragrance and taste notes. Because oolong teas require so much input and have such an intense richness of flavour notes, their brewing has been made into a
ceremonious ritual called gongfu cha, translated into “take your time to brew this state of the art cup” with a set of pots, cups, trays and other tools to serve the outstanding cups.

The best known and sought after heritage oolong teas from China are the low oxidised Tie Guan Yin from Anxi, South Fujian. The premium harvest is picked during the first half of October, whilst for all other oolongs the spring picks are the best – the leaves are tightly rolled into blue greenish pearls that infuse with intense flowery fragrance with notes of lilac and osmanthus. The deeply oxidised Wuyi Shan Rock teas are from Northern Fujian, with Da Hong Pao, Rou Gui, Shui Xian and others offering intensely fragrant cups with fruity and roasted notes with hints of caramel, brown sugar, cinnamon. The medium
oxidised Feng Huang Dancong from Guangdong’s Phenix Mountains, with intensely fragrant cups
offering notes of honey, orchids, gardenia, osmanthus, ginger flower, and magnolia, have big leaves and are harvested from specific single tea trees, very dear and rare cups indeed. According to Chinese statistics, oolong teas represent over 12 percent of the global production, which had a volume of around 382,000metric tonnes (mt ) in 2022.

The most famous oolong teas from Taiwan, initially brought over from Fujian but were then cross-bred and with local processing ways, fall into two main categories: the green or jade oolongs and the dark oolongs. The green or jade oolongs ,which are the low oxidised types such as the Milky Oolong or Nai Xiang Xin Juan, are highly appreciated for their creamy, buttery flavour, the Dong Ding Oolongs grown near Taipei, and the high mountain teas from Central Taiwan’s Nantou Province, namely from Ali Shan and Li Shan with their exclusive and costly frost teas that are picked bet ween November and January,
which are then delivered – in small parcels – to awaiting list of avid tea lovers. The dark oolongs, namely the high oxidised Dongfang Meiren or Oriental Beauty, are grown near Taipei.

According to International Tea Committee data, Taiwan’s 2022 total tea out put amounted to 14,000mt , with a share for oolong teas that were estimated to stand at around 75 percent and which are currently intensely promoted on international level with significant support from the government.

White Teas: A ‘Newer’ Category

Originating from China’s Fujian province, where the Da Bai and Bai Hao tea bush varietals grow as a local land race, t hes e elegant whit e buds and leaves were relaunched in the Western markets in the early 2000s . Their unbruised immaculate leaves, their reputation for high anti-oxidant effects, and the easy ways of brewing them without any fuss immediately fascinated consumers who jumped at the cup and wanted to learn more about it . This fascination has given rise to more authenticity controls because other producing countries did invest to master the manufacturing process, without necessarily being able to produce comparable cup quality.

As China wanted to protect these exclusive teas, which represent only about one percent of its tea production volume, an ISO Technical Report developed the basic definition and processing requirements in 2013. There are two main white tea terroirs in Fujian, around Fuding City and around Zhenghe City, both mountainous areas , which have started to intensely promote the white teas in recent years and to extend the cultivation surf ace. During the first International White Tea Conference that was convened in Fuding in December 2023,many Chinese tea experts presented their findings concerning tea research, tea and health, export facilities, protected geographical indication rules and more, all geared to the key target : how to enhance foreign markets’ awareness about the goodness of white teas and to make them keen to buy more.

Much clarification was provided about the cultivars, their characteristics and the three main quality grades:
• Early Spring: bud only harvest, called Yin Zhen (Silver Needle 4);
• Late Spring: more mature, one bud and two or three leaves, the still whitish Bai Mudan (White Peony);
• Summer Harvest: no more white down on the leaf, and no more buds, traded as Gung Mei and Shou Mei (Tribute and Longevity Eyebrow).

All grades are sought after in the home market, mainly for their reported health benefits and physiological effects, such as powerful antioxidant properties, antiviral and detoxifying effects, relief from fever, highly refreshing and relaxing during the hot tropical summer times.

Widely acknowledged in China, these reported health benefits come from the high polyphenol and theanine concentration in this rich plant material, which has undergone a soft processing that has not bruised the leaf and not broken up the cell walls, but allowed the leaves to wither for several days in the sun, thus also preserving their silvery downy coat, which makes up their elegant and unusual look.

These teas need a longer brewing time in order to extract all the flavours and juices – ten minutes
or more. They can be stored over years and their enzymes will allow the leaves to slowly continue
to mature, which is an additional bonus.

With their wide range of cups, from the premium origins to more accessible untraditional growing areas, consumers can discover these outstanding teas step by step, indulging in these gently boosting and truly soothing brews for everyday consumption and moments of sharing. Be it in or out-of-home, both oolong and white teas will provide highly pleasant moments of leisure and wellbeing, as well as offering the opportunity to become more knowledgeable about quality details, product botanicals, tea garden geographies and cultural tea brewing accessories.

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 Zone Latin America (LATAM) and Zone North America (NA) will merge to form Zone Americas (AMS), which will be led by Steve Presley. He will relocate to Nestlé’s headquarters in Vevey, Switzerland.
 Zone Greater China Region (GCR) will become part of Zone Asia, Oceania and Africa (AOA), under the leadership of Remy Ejel. David Zhang will step down from the Executive Board and will remain Chairman and CEO of the Greater China Region.
 Zone Europe (EUR) will continue to be led by Guillaume Le Cunff and remains unchanged.

Laurent Freixe, Nestlé CEO, said, “A leaner Executive Board structure and close collaboration of the leadership team at the headquarters will increase simplicity, speed up decision-making and strengthen the momentum behind global initiatives. We will continue to build on the strengths of our Market Heads to ensure consistent in-market execution across the Group.” Pursuant to the reducing the Executive Board, Freixe announced:

 Bernard Meunier has decided to step down from the Executive Board on 31 March 2025, and will lead strategic projects for the Group. David Rennie, currently head of Nestlé Coffee Brands will succeed Bernard Meunier as the head of Strategic Business Units (SBUs) and Marketing and Sales. Nestlé Coffee Brands, with the exception of Nespresso, will be integrated into the SBU organisation.
 Nespresso is led by Philipp Navratil. He will join the Executive Board and now report directly to Nestlé CEO Freixe. Philipp Navratil is known for his ability to inspire and motivate people. He has extensive global experience across various roles and a profound understanding of Nestlé.
 Nestlé Health Science will continue to be led by Anna Mohl.
 Antonia Wanner, who leads the Sustainability Unit, will now report directly to Freixe without holding a position on the Executive Board.

Starting in 2025, Nestlé’s reporting will comprise five segments: Zone AMS, Zone AOA, Zone EUR, Nestlé Health Science and Nespresso. The company will also continue to voluntarily report sales performance each quarter for North America and for Latin America within Zone AMS and for Greater China within Zone AOA.

Freixe added, “With these organisational changes, all the leaders of key units driving our performance and our transformation will now report directly to me. This is crucial, as we sharpen our focus on consumers and customers and restore investment in our brands and in innovation to expand market share and accelerate our performance. Going forward, we are also placing a greater emphasis on Nestlé’s digital transformation into a real-time, end-to-end connected, data- and AI-powered organisation. I am confident these changes will optimally position Nestlé for future success.”

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The Camellia sinensis plant, from which matcha originates, was first cultivated for use in tea in China in the 3rd century BCE, but it wasn’t until the 7th to 10th centuries that the practice of consuming the leaves in the form of matcha was first documented. Matcha, unlike the infusion process of its black and green tea sisters, is made by finely grinding the tea leaves into a powder that is mixed with hot water and consumed in its entirety. It is thought that a Japanese Buddhist monk brought matcha to Japan
sometime around the 12th century, where it was considered highly valuable and coveted and therefore necessitated a careful preparation method, and so its consumption and preparation developed into a spiritual practice by the 16th century, the whisking of powdered green tea into hot water a meditative ritual. Since matcha began as a rare and premium product, the ceremony of its preparation became
entrenched in its consumption. In modern day Japan, matcha tea ceremonies are still widely practiced, and while it is no longer reserved for the elite or ‘ruling class’, it is still deeply ritualistic with specific implements such as the bowl and bamboo whisk, and even particular whisking motions or patterns.
Meanwhile, elsewhere in Japan, the matcha latte has become extremely popular, commercialised
and readily available, and co-existing alongside its traditional consumption in the country.

Matcha Migrates West

Western countries have long since been discovering and adopting Japanese culture and cuisine, and matcha is no different, with it seeing a marked rise, particularly in the US. Future Market Insights (FMI) reports that the matcha market in 2023 was worth USD $2.7 billion and is expected to reach $7.1 billion by 2033 — a CAGR of 10.2 percent. FMI attributes this growth to the interest in its health benefits, use in skincare and culinary applications such as confectionery. The latter of which is driving
its popularity in the Indian market, according to Fact MR , while the health benefits are driving the market in the US.

Japanese tea company, Ippodo, was founded in 1717, “when the [matcha] tea ceremony had begun to be enjoyed by other elites like warrior families and high-class townsfolk,” said Tomoko Honda, head of global operations, Ippodo. In 2001,Ippodo began selling its matcha overseas as the number of international visitors to its Kyoto shop had begun to increase.

The growing interest in matcha was also noted by Germany-based tea supplier, Wollenhaupt, which had previously only been including matcha in its catalogue as a ‘marginal phenomenon’, said Marco Sinram, head of tea trading and sustainability, Wollenhaupt, but recognised that demand was developing ‘dynamically’, and therefore now offer three different types of matcha to its customers.

“Ten years ago, very few people had heard of matcha and now the market is absolutely exploding. So many new matcha brands have popped up in the last couple of years and you can find matcha on menus in more cafés and restaurants. The UK is now following in the steps of places like New York and Los Angeles with matcha bars popping up across the country,” said Katherine Swift, founder and CEO
of OMGTea, a UK-based specialist matcha green tea company.

One such place is Blank Street coffee chain, which began in Brooklyn, New York, in August 2020, and now has locations across New York; Boston, Massachusetts; Washington, DC; and in 2022 debuted in London. While Blank Street serves an array of café and coffee shop offerings, some of its most distinguishable and popular products are its matcha beverages.

When Blank Street launched in London in Summer 2022 ,matcha wasn’t a widely accessible drink. There were limited places to get matcha on the high street, but most of those places offered either expensive or low-quality matcha. We wanted to disrupt the market by launching exciting flavour combinations that made a niche category into one that is more fun and accessible for everyone,” explained Ignacio Llado, UK managing director at Blank Street. “In Spring of 2023 we launched our Blueberry Matcha, joining the classic Matcha Latte on our menu. This drink was the first of its kind in London, and […] immediately caused a huge buzz, with TikTok and word of mouth helping it to quickly climb to become a Blank Street best seller.”

Matcha’s vibrant green colour affords it a social-media-ready aesthetic for consumers, fuelling its popularity among influencers and the younger generation. Blank Street has recognised this in its marketing strategy, making use of clear cups and contrasting colours to bring its matcha drinks to life.

While many of the high-street iterations of matcha lattes and frappés may be heavy on sugar or cream, matcha itself is considered a remarkable health food, with this being another, perhaps the largest, draw to the product for consumers. “Matcha aligns well with overall wellness trends and appeals to those looking for more specific benefits such as a healthier alternative to coffee or energy drinks, detox,
increased antioxidant intake, weight management, etc,” said Swift.

A Healthy Shade of Green

The way in which the Camellia sinensis plant is grown in order to produce matcha, allows for the accumulation of catechins, (−)-epigallocatechin-3 -gallate (EGCG) in particular is most abundant in matcha. It is these catechins that provide high antioxidant properties and give matcha its reputation as a health drink. It has been found that “regular consumption of matcha may have a positive effect on both physical and mental health,” according to the report Health Benefits and Chemical Composition of Matcha and Green Tea: A Review by Joanna Kochman, Karolina Jakubczyk, Justyna Antoniewicz, Honorata Mruk, and Katarzyna Janda, published on PubMed Central.

It is the health benefits of these antioxidants found in matcha that encouraged Swift to establish OMGTea. She began researching its benefits after her mother was diagnosed with breast cancer, then both she and her mother began routinely drinking matcha green tea. Five years later, Swift launched OMGTea, and a year after that she founded The Healthy Life Foundation, a charity that funds research into age-related diseases, including cancer.

Swift emphasised, however, that the quality of the matcha consumed is essential to reaping its health
benefits. While matcha is generally considered a premium product, there are more affordable blends
available; these are the kind often used as ingredients in confectionery or desserts where the matcha taste need not be so refined. Matcha can be tested for its quality by examining the colour and texture, as well as the taste. She explained that they quality check their matcha regularly using the ‘finger/stroke test’, whereby matcha powder is placed on a white piece of paper and, using a finger, is pulled across the page to observe its colour and texture alongside others. The brighter the green colour, the higher quality the matcha, also the particle size of high-grade matcha ought to be between five and ten microns, as fine as baby powder, said Swift.

This essential colour and texture gauge all comes from the farming process, which has specific methods to ensure these attributes. “For around three weeks before harvest, shades are put over the tea fields to block out the sunlight, which increases the amount of flavourful, umami-rich components in the tea leaves. After the leaves are harvested in the beginning of May, the leaves are steamed, cooled and dried, baked, and sorted. […] The leaves are then ground with stone mills to produce the fine powder called matcha,” explained Honda. Shading the tea leaves is a traditional characteristic of matcha production, and is a method invented centuries ago in Kyoto, Uji, Japan, and is now widespread, she noted.

It is the shading that boosts the leaves nutrient levels, causing an overproduction of chlorophyll, contributing to its bright green colour, added Swift. The stone mills are also what produce the silky, fine texture of quality matcha, whereas lower grades are cut and blended using steel, which, she noted, reduces the flavour and bio availability of the matcha’s nutrients.

The location where the matcha is grown is also crucial to its quality and flavour. There are specific areas that are known for their matcha production, such Uji, Japan, “one of the most renowned regions for matcha growing in the world,” said Llado, and it is around this area that Wollenhaupt, Blank Street and Ippodo source their matcha. The region of Kagoshima, Japan, is also particularly suited to matcha production, benefitting from its volcanic soil and climate, commented Swift, and is where OMGTea sources its products.

Sustaining Production

With such specific regions and fastidious productions techniques, are matcha’s producers prepared to meet the surging global demand from the product, not just domestically in Japan, but as far away as the US and UK? Sinram explained that, while Wollenhaupt believes that the highest and most authentic quality of matcha can be found only in Japan, it is possible to source it from other producing countries,
depending on the requirements of the customer.

Meanwhile, Swift noted that in the Kagoshima region, practices are being undertaken to increase production in order to meet demand, “Farmers in Kagoshima have been adopting advanced agricultural techniques to enhance matcha. These innovations help increase yield and improve the quality of the tea leaves. Some tea farms are converting or expanding their fields specifically for the cultivation of tencha, the raw material used to make matcha. Local government initiatives and support for the tea industry have also played a role in encouraging the growth of matcha production in the region.”

Honda added that as global climates change, areas that are suitable for production are shifting and will continue to shift. “Areas where tea can be grown will likely change or expand as well, whether inside or outside of Japan. We are not sure what the future will bring, but it is key to plan for and adapt to changes.”

This growth in demand has created a broad market for matcha with varying requirements and uses. Where it has historically and traditionally been an exceptionally premium and ceremony-bound product, it is now a commercialised and accessible product for many consumers, posing the question of how far it can be removed from its origins and cultural significance? “While it’s great that matcha is going more mainstream, we want to make sure that it still feels special and comes with the holistic experience that has been central to Blank Street since we first launched,” noted Llado.

So where perhaps the ceremonial aspect of matcha may no longer be a necessity, it still can add something to the experience of consumers, if they engage with it, encouraging more mindful consumption, said Swift.

Honda added that, while consumers may not know of its ceremonial or spiritual origins, “during the tea ceremony and in Japanese society in general, when drinking matcha it is considered important to feel gratitude for the person who made the matcha for you and for those who produced it. We think it would be wonderful if that sentiment grew alongside the increasing popularity of matcha worldwide.” Therefore, its marketing is crucial, to not only offer consumers a brightly coloured health drink, but also a moment of reflection on both the beverage and the process that went into every sip.

• Kathryn Brand is an associate editor with T&CTJ, while still writing for several of Bell’s
  other magazines. She joined Bell Publishing at the beginning of 2022 after graduating from
  the University of East Anglia with a degree in English Literature and Creative Writing.

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With 1.4 billion people and 128 million hectares of arable land, China faces the daunting task of producing nearly half of the world’s tea while also providing food security for 20 percent of the world’s population. The Peoples Republic of China has been able to attain its current level of success in part due to the application of pesticides and fertilisers. However, over reliance and misapplication of these agrochemicals has raised production costs, contributed to environmental pollution, and created instances of agricultural products with unacceptably high levels of chemical residues. Chinese officials have put a strategy in place that has already begun to curtail the over dependence on conventional agrochemicals by using bio-pesticides that are seen as safer alternatives.

China has become the world’s largest consumer of agrochemicals, at one time using about 30 percent of total fertilisers and pesticides. These pesticides include herbicides, insecticides, and fungicides. In order to combat agricultural production costs while also reducing environmental damage and impacts on human health, China initiated the “Action Plan to Realize Zero Growth in Pesticide Use by 2020” in 2015. Pesticide use in China peaked around 2014 and has been declining since 2016. As a result, goals for curbing growth in pesticide use were achieved ahead of schedule. In fact, some projections estimate that China may be able to completely eliminate its use of chemical pesticides by 2050.

When it comes to China’s tea industry, attaining chemical pesticide-free agriculture may be an especially important goal. About 60 percent of the world’s tea is grown by smallholders. China tea farms do not operate on the plantation models found in places like Sri Lanka and India, so smallholder farms of two hectares or less are very common. In fact, joint research from the Universities of Melbourne, Zhejiang, Fudan, Wuhan, and Stanford have found that smallholder farms in China tend to use agrochemicals less efficiently. This not only results in greater financial costs for the farmer, but also contributes to increased pollution of the soil and water.

China’s tea industry has likewise been shifting away from chemical pesticides towards bio-pesticides. Examples of bio-pesticides that are gaining more widespread use include:

• Beauveria bassiana: B. bassiana is a fungus that naturally occurs in soils and is a parasite in various insects. The spores enter the insect’s body and spread into a fungus, thereby killing the insect. B. bassiana is used against moths and caterpillars that feed on tea leaves. Current studies have not shown any harmful impacts of B. bassiana applications on animals or humans, so there are few regulations or MRL (maximum residue level) guidelines in place when it is properly used.
• Metarhizium anisopliae is another fungus-based insecticide found in soils around the world that is also parasitic in insects. M. anisopliae has been shown to be harmful to reptiles in some conditions. There are also a few regulations or MRL guidelines when M. anisopliae is properly applied.
• Pyrethrins are compounds found in chrysanthemum and have been known to kill or drive off insects since the Chinese began spreading chrysanthemum powders as a bug deterrent as far back as 1000 BC. Pyrethrins are considered safer insecticides when they are applied locally to tea and other crops because UV light and changes in pH break pyrethrins down into harmless chemicals within a relatively short time frame. Studies of variations of pyrethrin, including higher concentrations, exposure to synthetic pyrethroids (like cypermethrin) and pyrethrins combined with piperonyl butoxide (PBO) have shown potential harm to humans and animals. Effects included allergic reactions and potential carcinogenic effects. As such, pyrethrins are regulated and MRLs exist.
• Matrine is an insecticide derived from the Sophora flavescens plant that is native to various countries, including China, India, Japan, and Russia. Sophora flavescens is used in some Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) applications. Matrine breaks down relatively quickly in nature. It can be toxic to aquatic animals and should not be used during flowering in order to protect bees. Some MRLs (Maximum Residue Level) are in place for matrine in tea and in some botanicals.

China pesticide
consumption levels from 1991 to 2021. Graph credit: Frontiers in Plant Science (frontiersin.org)

Challenges to bio-pesticides

While bio-pesticides do offer a potentially safer, more sustainable alternative to harmful chemical pesticides, challenges do remain. One of the first of these challenges is cost. Some insecticides, like pyrethrins and matrine can begin to break down within days of application. This may make multiple applications necessary to sufficiently control a pest outbreak.

Successful chemical pesticides often have a track record of remaining active for longer periods of time. Access to, and consistent quality of bio-pesticides has also been a concern for researchers measuring the effectiveness of bio-pesticides on Chinese tea production. In some cases, bio-pesticides need to be combined with chemical pesticides to provide sufficient potency.

Bio-pesticides can also be combined with other green forms of pest control, including:

• Pheromone traps: These traps contain synthesised sex pheromones of targeted insects, thereby attracting and killing tea pests like moths and caterpillars. Pheromone traps have been studied on a small scale of tea production, but results have shown potential for combining pheromone traps with other pest control methods. Pheromone traps provide the benefit of targeting the intended insect without harming beneficial insects.
• Light traps: Seasonal use of light traps has also shown potential as a supporting practice of pest control. Solar-powered lights can be activated after sunset during the growing season to attract moths like the tea looper.
• Sticky traps: The placement of improved sticky traps after spring pruning was shown to capture leafhoppers while trapping fewer beneficial predators, like spiders and wasps.
• Traps and green pest control, along with the proper and timely application of bio-pesticides represent aspects of the pedestals of integrated pest management, namely prevention, monitoring, and intervention.

China’s advance towards reducing its dependence on chemical pesticides and adoption of safer, greener bio-pesticides shows potential for the tea industry at large. Smallholder tea farmers across the globe now have increased options to more efficiently use chemical pesticides while also testing better and safer bio-pesticides that benefit human health, the environment, and economic growth.

• Jason Walker is marketing director of Firsd Tea North America. Prior to his work with Firsd Tea, Walker served in a variety of roles in tea and beverage business capacities. His experience includes business services for small tea companies, a top-ranked online destination for tea consumer education and co-founding a coffee business. His insights draw upon his diverse range of experience in sales, operations and management in the tea world. He may be reached at: jason.walker@firsdtea.com.

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Producing just over one half of the world’s tea in 2023, China remains the world’s dominant tea producer. Global tea production rose by 3.2 percent over the previous year, from 6.4 to 6.6 million metric tonnes (mmt) and the Middle Kingdom accounted for 50.6 percent, or 3.3 mmt while increasing its production by 5 percent over the previous year. India took second place with 20.7 percent of global production, having increased its yield by 2 percent.

Kenya rounds out the top three producers with 8.6 percent of the world’s annual production. Taken together, these three producers accounted for 80 percent of global production in 2023.

The top four tea-producing countries saw gains in production, including Sri Lanka. Ceylon tea production increased by 1.8 percent after having experienced a tumultuous period of economic struggle and agricultural policies that stymied tea production levels. Argentina, a significant source of black teas for the US market, has seen steady production declines for several years. Argentine tea production decreased by 4.5 percent over 2022 levels. Given historic trends and that the major producers continue to increase their production, overall global tea production levels are expected to continue rising.

All graphs courtesy of FirsdTea

Unlike the other main tea-growing countries, China is primarily a green tea producer: 57.9 percent, or 1.9 mmt of its 2023 production was green tea, followed by 0.49 mmt of black tea. This green tea alone accounts for just under 30 percent of 2023 global tea volume. The remainder of China’s tea is dark (hei) at 13.7 percent, wulong at 10 percent, white at 3 percent, and yellow tea at 0.7 percent. In 2019, black tea surpassed dark tea as the second-largest segment of tea production. Since then, production volumes of the two have remained fairly close. The broader popularity of black tea, along with growing domestic demand for ready-to-drink (RTD) teas and black tea’s relatively high average export price speaks in favour of further gains in black tea production share.

China’s top four tea-producing provinces – Fujian, Yunnan, Sichuan, and Guizhou – accounted for half of China’s tea production, and they each showed increases in production of between 1 and 5 percent. Double-digit gains in production were exhibited by Hubei, the fifth largest producer with a 10.6 percent gain, and Anhui, the eighth largest producer with a 12.4 percent gain. While Fujian may be the single largest tea-producing province, the greatest share of tea is still grown in the Western Belt (35.3 percent from Yunnan, Sichuan, and Guizhou provinces combined) followed by the Eastern Belt (25.7 percent from Fujian, Anhui, and Zhejiang). The Central Belt (Hubei, Hunan, and Shaanxi provinces) follows close behind with 22.2 percent of production.

Fujian may also be China’s top yielding tea province in terms of tons per hectare, but it is only fifth in terms of growing area. Yunnan province leads the pack with over 0.51 million hectares (mha) of tea fields, followed by Guizhou (0.47 mha), Sichuan (0.40 mha) and Hubei (0.38 mha). Fujian’s advantages lie in its warmer climate and more established production areas.

The Chinese government has encouraged the establishment of tea fields in the more poverty-impacted counties of the Central and Western Belts as a means of promoting rural development and strengthening local incomes. Efforts appear to have made progress, as the central government declared victory in eradicating poverty and now aims towards securing more infrastructure development and economic stability. For tea production, however, training these less-experienced workers continues. Outputs are expected to improve along with the maturity of young tea plants and the advancement of tea workers in the areas.

A notable exception is Guangdong province, which has the second highest yield per ha. The province does produce some well-known teas, like yingde black tea and dan cong wulong, but it is generally better known for its industrial output and commercial trade. Guangdong ranks ninth in overall tea production and thirteenth in hectares planted. It shows little sign of dedicating more land to future tea production.

China’s exports dip slightly

Global tea exports from producing countries declined by about 5 percent over the previous year, with China exports dipping by about 2 percent. China, however, maintained its place as the producing country with the second highest volume of exports. Kenya took the top position, having increased its exports by 14.7 percent over 2022 levels. Kenya accounted for 30.1 percent of global exports from producing countries. China’s 0.37 mmt of exports accounted for 21.2 percent of global exports from producing countries, and 11 percent of China’s annual production.

In terms of volume, 84.2 percent of China’s tea export was green tea and the next highest volume was black tea with 7.9 percent. Green tea exports remained relatively steady compared with 2022 levels, but black tea dropped by 12.6 percent over the previous year. This rise and fall in black export volumes coincided with a few factors. Supply of Ceylon black tea dropped in 2022. When this occurred, Pakistan and other major black tea-importing countries turned to China and others to meet their black tea demands. This surge stands in contrast with what occurred in other parts of the world, where tea imports increased in 2022 as buyers re-stocked after Covid, created supply chain woes, and then decreased their import levels in 2023 as they worked through excess inventory.

Morocco, China’s largest tea-export partner, showed a similar pattern. Most years, Morocco alone takes in about 20 percent of China’s exports, usually around 75,000 metric tonnes. 2020 saw a 9.6 percent decline in Chinese tea imports. The next two years saw import volumes return to usual levels, but 2023 levels declined again by about 16 percent from 75,400 metric tonnes to 59,800 metric tonnes. Ghana, which has been the third largest export destination, increased imports by 44 percent, swapping places with Uzbekistan. Taken together, these three countries import one third of China’s tea exports.

Russia and the United States took in 4 percent and 2.3 percent of China’s exports, respectively. Import volumes were down by 25.1 percent for Russia and 33.7 percent for the US. Overstocking was the main culprit for these declines, particularly for the US. Imports of Chinese teas into the US have been showing signs of rebalancing beginning early in 2024.

A strong outlook

China’s overall tea trends appear positive. Production levels are on track to increase around 4.5 to 5 percent based on average annual increases. Spring 2024 weather in most areas has cooperated, providing a healthy crop thus far. Development in tea producing areas, especially the Western and Central Belts, remains steady. Domestic consumer demand also appears to be on the uptick.

China’s tea industry has been highlighting the need for promoting demand, and recent years have seen an increase in the introduction of bottle teas and other tea-based RTD beverage products. Average export prices can be expected to stay steady between USD $5.50 to $6.00 per kg, although labour and farm inputs (fertiliser, agrochemicals) continue to rise. Export volumes are showing signs of rebounding after last year’s decline. With production and consumption rising, and exports recovering, China is poised to maintain its dominant role in global tea.

• Jason Walker is marketing director of Firsd Tea North America. Prior to his work with Firsd Tea, Walker served in a variety of roles in tea and beverage business capacities. His experience includes business services for small tea companies, a top-ranked online destination for tea consumer education and co-founding a coffee business. His insights draw upon his diverse range of experience in sales, operations and management in the tea world. He may be reached at: jason.walker@firsdtea.com.

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The global green tea market is steadily growing these days thanks to maintaining stable consumption and its favourable image as a healthy drink.

Since the end of the pandemic, consumption of green tea has significantly increased with the best dynamics being observed in its major consuming regions, among which are primarily Asian and African nations.

Matthew Barry, insight manager, food and beverage at Euromonitor International said that presently, green tea is the second-most important segment of the global tea market, with most consumption occurring in either East Asia or North Africa. “In both of these areas, green tea has a very strong historical tradition associated with it, and it represents a large portion of overall tea consumption. China by itself is roughly half the global market, followed by Morocco, Indonesia, and Japan,” he explained.

“Outside of those two regions green tea has a presence virtually everywhere, but it is very unusual to see it rise much beyond a fifth of the total tea market. In the rest of the world there is not much of a historical tradition of green tea drinking so it tends to appeal mostly to wellness-oriented minorities of tea drinkers.”

China & Japan: green tea behemoths

China and Japan traditionally have been the largest producers and suppliers of green tea on a global scale. The level of their domestic consumption has declined in recent years but it has been compensated for by the increase in exports overseas.

In the case of China, since the beginning of the 2000s, the country has significantly increased its green tea exports, which are currently valued in the range of USD $1.3 to $1.4 billion annually. According to earlier data from the 2022 China Tea Import and Export Trade Analysis Report, among the major green tea-producing and exporting provinces in China, Zhejiang Province ranks first with an export volume of 147,000 tonnes and a value of $451.22 million, along with Fujian Province and Anhui Province.

As for the domestic market, according to China Tea Circulation Association data, sales of green tea in China in 2022-2023 were equivalent to 1.2-1.3 million tonnes annually, accounting for 58.1 percent of the total sales. In terms of the other teas China produces:

✦ Black tea – 314,800 tonnes, accounting for 14.3 percent;
✦ Dark tea – 313,800 tonnes, accounting for 14.2 percent;
✦ Oolong tea – 200 tonnes, accounting for 10 percent;
✦ White tea – 62,500 tonnes, accounting for 2.8 percent; and
✦ Yellow tea – 12,300 tonnes, accounting for 0.6 percent.

Japan’s green tea sector has also been experiencing a renaissance. Due to the impact of the Japanese food boom and increasing health consciousness, the amount of Japanese tea exports has more than doubled over the past ten years. According to Japanese Ministry of Finance Trade Statistics data, the demand for powdered tea, including matcha, has increased, and exports in 2023 reached a record high of approximately 21.9 billion yen (approximately $132.6 million). The bulk of exports goes to the United States, which accounts for about 34 percent of the total export volume, most of it is matcha, while leaf tea is popular in the European Union and Taiwan. The Ministry reports that organically grown tea accounts for nearly 80 percent of exports to the European Union and United Kingdom, the bulk of which is green tea.

The Ministry also noted that the current popularity of Japanese green tea in the US is also reflected by the fact that many Silicon Valley companies even offer Japanese green tea as a work conditioning drink in their employee welfare programmes.

Traditionally, most Japanese green tea is produced and grown in the Shizuoka Prefecture, Japan’s leading tea-producing area and its Shizuoka City is known as the ‘town of tea’.

The Japanese Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries is creating conditions for a further increase of exports of Japanese green tea internationally. By 2025, the export value of Japanese green tea should reach 31.2 billion yen (about $197 million), compared with about 25 billion yen (about $158.8 million) in 2023. This is part of the existing state strategy to increase the overall export value of Japan’s agricultural products to over 2 trillion yen in 2025 (circa $12.63 billion) and 5 trillion yen (circa $31.57 billion) in 2030.

Consumption grows in Africa

In recent years, the African region has become one of the major consumers of green tea. For example, Morocco, located in Northern Africa, currently ranks as the world’s sixth largest tea consumer. Green tea accounts for the bulk of tea consumed in the country and it is supplied by China, which leads in terms of tea exports to the region, well ahead of its major rivals.

Harvesting in West Java. Image: Barbara Dufrene

Official statistics of the Moroccan Association of Tea and Coffee Producers (AMITC), report that the kingdom alone accounts for nearly 25 percent of the overall volume of global exports of China green tea, including 46 percent of the ‘Gunpowder’ variety and 54 percent of the ‘Chunmee’ variety.

According to AMITC data, with an annual average of 82,000 tonnes, Morocco is considered one of the world’s leading importers of tea, most of is green tea varieties. Per capita consumption of green tea in the country is estimated at 1.85 kilos per year. AMITC plans to launch production of its own green tea brand as efforts to grow tea started in the 1970s in the Larache region of the country.

In general, green tea consumption in the North African region and in countries in the Sahara region such as Mauritania, Mali, Chad, Niger, Burkina Faso, Senegal, and Ivory Coast has significantly increased in recent years, and the growth is ongoing.

Most analysts expect that with the emergence of Northern Africa as one of the world’s major green tea-consuming hubs, the level of competition for its market among global producers will be heightened in years to come.

In addition to China and Japan, the African region is also under the radar of another major regional player — Indonesia.

Indonesia: growing production

In accordance with the Indonesian Tea Statistics Report from the Central Statistics Agency (BPS), the national tea production in the country varied in the range of 120,000-130,000 tonnes annually during the period of 2022-2023 with the possibility of an increase this year.

In geographical terms, West Java is the largest tea producer in Indonesia with a volume of 66.87 percent of total national production in 2023. Currently, tea is planted on an area of 108.75 hectares in Indonesia with an average productivity of 1.6 tonnes/hectares/year. Most of these areas are green tea. However, according to local experts, the capacity of Indonesia’s green tea processing industry is still limited.

Despite maintaining a high popularity, most analysts do not expect a sharp growth in demand for green tea in Indonesia, over the next several years. Per EM’s Barry, “we are anticipating a slight decline in global green tea consumption [between] 2024 and 2025 of around 1 percent in retail volume terms. That is primarily coming from declining consumption in China and Japan, both of which are very mature markets and facing challenging demographics.”

New green tea markets

In addition to the African nations, a major impetus for a further growth of green tea and its consumption is expected to be provided by India, as well as Turkey and some Arabian nations to a lesser extent.
“The standout in green tea consumption growth is absolutely India, which has been seeing consistent double-digit consumption increases for some time. There is little reason to expect that to slow down.

India is already of course a massive consumer of tea, but health and wellness trends have shifted an increasing number of Indian consumers towards green over the black tea that has historically dominated in India,” Barry explained. “A couple of other big historically black-drinking markets are also seeing similar shifts, such as Turkey and Saudi Arabia.” He said black tea is not seriously threatened in any of these countries but there is an increasing number of occasions shifting to green.

The green tea segment has always been of interest to global players, many of which have significantly expanded their presence in recent years.

An example is US-based Harney & Sons Teas, which has continued to increase its green tea offerings, most notably introducing additional specialty Japanese teas. Emeric Harney, a spokesperson for the company, said that one of its new green teas is called Wazuka Guricha and comes from the Wazuka Valley, the other Asanoka Sencha from the Miyakazi prefecture.

Harney believes the US will provide some major opportunities for growth in the coming years. “America will continue to grow its green tea consumption in 2024. We still find that our export markets show a tempered interest in green teas.”

The US market will remain a priority for another major player – The Republic of Tea. Kristina Tucker, minister of enlightenment and commerce at The Republic of Tea, said the brand continues to see demand for innovative green tea blends. “Our organic Double Green Matcha in tea bags consistently grows year over year since its launch in 2007. Demand for matcha is growing fast again as well as our green teas with a wellness benefit, such as our organic SuperGreen Brain Boost tea.”
Currently, The Republic of Tea offers over 50 varieties of green tea, and “we plan to continue to innovate new blends for green tea lovers. As our focus is on the American tea drinker, we certainly anticipate continued strong demand for green teas in the USA.”

• Eugene Gerden is an international freelance writer who specialises in covering the global coffee, tea and agricultural industries. He works for several industry titles and may be reached at gerden.eug@gmail.com.

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• Project Café East Asia 2024 shows the total East Asian branded coffee shop market grew 24% in terms of outlets over the last 12 months to reach 119,221 stores, with China representing nearly 42% of the total market.
• 17 out of the largest 18 East Asian markets achieved net outlet growth over the past 12 months, with seven markets experiencing double digit store growth.
• Eighty-five percent of the 645 branded coffee chains currently in operation across East Asia originate in the region with 95 operators from outside the continent.
• 72% of East Asian industry leaders surveyed report increased sales over the last 12 months, with the same percentage believing trading conditions will further improve next year.

China leads significant coffee shop growth across East Asia

China has overtaken the US as the largest branded coffee shop market in the world by outlets, growing
58% over the last 12 months to reach 49,691 outlets. Growth was led by the rapid expansion of small
store format and delivery focused Luckin Coffee and Cotti Coffee, which added 5,059 and 6,004 net new stores respectively. Starbucks opened net 785 outlets in China during the period and is the second
largest branded coffee operator in the country by outlets.

China is the fastest growing market in East Asia ahead of Malaysia (28%) and the Philippines (15.3%).
Overall, six of the largest ten markets by outlets achieved double-digit outlet growth over the last 12
months.

Starbucks remains East Asia’s largest coffee chain – but competitors challenge dominance

Starbucks remains the largest branded coffee chain in East Asia, having opened 1,223 net new outlets in the last 12 months to reach 13,524 stores across 15 markets. However, domestic operators such as
South Korea’s Mega Coffee, Indonesia’s Tomoro Coffee and Malaysia’s Zus Coffee are challenging
Starbucks’ dominance and increasing their market share.

As the total East Asian branded coffee shop market matures, rapidly expanding operators are
increasingly seeking international growth opportunities. Cotti Coffee has entered South Korea, Indonesia, Japan and Hong Kong since opening its first store in China in 2022, while Luckin Coffee, Kopi Kenangan and Compose Coffee all opened their first international stores within the last 12 months.

Convenience key concern for Chinese coffee consumers

More than 90% of 4,000 Chinese coffee shop consumers surveyed drink hot coffee weekly, while 64%
consume iced coffee at least once a week. Indicating the role of coffee shops in driving consumption,
89% of consumers surveyed visit or order from a coffee shop at least once a week with a fifth of those
doing so daily.

Small format stores focused on convenience are widespread in the Chinese branded coffee shop market. More than 85% of those surveyed have pre-ordered or ordered for delivery from a coffee shop within the last 12 months, with 57% preferencing beverage delivery over visiting a coffee shop.

Industry optimism remains high with further sales and outlet growth on the horizon

The majority (72%) of industry leaders surveyed achieved annual sales growth in their respective markets, with the same percentage positive about current trading conditions.

World Coffee Portal forecasts the total East Asian branded coffee shop market will exceed 136,500 outlets by November 2024, and 181,500 by 2028 representing five-year growth of 8.8% CAGR.

China’s booming outlet growth is expected to slow to 24% in 2024 and 6% in 2028, while Indonesia, Malaysia and the Philippines are forecast to achieve double-digit outlet growth over the next three
years.

Commenting on the report findings, Allegra Group founder and CEO, Jeffrey Young said, “The East Asian coffee shop market is clearly experiencing rapid growth led by phenomenal outlet expansion in China, which has fast become a global coffee industry powerhouse. It is encouraging to see the established South Korean and Japanese markets continue to perform strongly alongside the growth of coffee culture in fast-developing markets such as Vietnam, Malaysia and Indonesia.”

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The store is located in the heart of Broadway, in Midtown. New York landmarks such as Times Square, the Empire State Building and Madison Square Garden are within a ten-minute walk.

HEYTEA’s innovative new-generation Chinese tea is made from fresh fruits, fresh tea leaves, and premium milk. In contrast, much of the “bubble tea” currently being sold on the market is made from instant tea powder with artificial additives. HEYTEA says it will be the first Chinese new style tea brand selling products made with genuine, high-quality ingredients in the US.

“Cheese tea”

The initial innovation of HEYTEA was the introduction of Cheese Tea. Not cheese in the traditional sense, but a cold tea with a thick, frothy, cream cheese-flavoured foam on top. The foam is made with cream cheese, milk, cane sugar, and a little sea salt, and adds enjoyable taste and texture sensations to the product.

The store will offer three categories of its foundational products: Refreshing Real Fruit Teas, Real Dairy Milk Teas, And Refreshing Finest Teas. The pricing ranges from USD $3.99 to $7.49 (excluding additional toppings) with an average pre-tax price of $6.33.

The originator accelerates global expansion

Founded in 2012 in Jiangbianli, Guangdong Province, China, HEYTEA was the first brand to introduce fresh tea leaves and premium milk instead of instant tea powder and artificial additives to create cheese tea.

At its inaugural stores, in Shanghai and Beijing, HEYTEA drew hours-long lines of patrons, establishing itself as a rising star in the market, and China’s premier new-generation consumer brand.

It played a pivotal role in introducing new style tea brands to China’s high-end shopping centers, often adjacent to luxury brand stores, HEYTEA also engages in co-branding ventures with companies including FENDI, Adidas, W Hotel among others, and influential figures in the fashion industry such as Hiroshi Fujiwara.

The first Chinese new style tea brand to go global, HEYTEA launched its first overseas store in Singapore in 2018, with over 3,000 cups of tea were sold every day during the opening period.

Significance of the New York City market entry

HEYTEA’s US debut is a testament to its unwavering commitment to ushering in a new era of tea enjoyment. While the company has previously entered global markets ie, the United Kingdom, Australia, and Canada, the US offers a multitude of new opportunities.

“As the initial entry point for HEYTEA into the US market, New York City holds extraordinary significance for the growth of our brand,” said Yujia Gu, VP of strategy at HEYTEA. “By providing high-quality products and services, we aspire to deliver a joyful brand experience to consumers in NYC and beyond, contributing to the ongoing development of the US tea industry.”

With its Midtown Broadway debut at 1407 Broadway, between West 38th and 39th streets, HEYTEA demonstrates the significance of, and its confidence in, the US market. In the future, HEYTEA will continue to bring quality products and exciting new brand experiences to American consumers.

For more information about HEYTEA, visit: heytea.com.

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In June 2021, Shanghai police broke up a ring of pu’er counterfeiting dens and confiscated over ten tonnes of fake pu’er cakes that would have been sold for an estimated 1.8 billion RMB (about USD $250 million). The police made a public display of destroying the seized teas, which included a road roller pulverising the fake cakes.

Police busts like this in China are not uncommon. Guangzhou police confiscated about 23,000 cakes in 2014, and 120,000 cakes again in 2018. Counterfeiting pu’er cakes appears to be big business.

Shanghai police steamroll counterfeit pu’er teas in June 2021. Image source: zhuanlan.zhihu.com/p/420794580

Authentic pu’er cakes can be quite pricey. The value of pu’er is due to a combination of several factors. Pressed pu’er cakes can be aged for decades or even centuries. A properly aged pu’er is comparable to an aged bourbon or wine in that aged pu’er are appreciated for their exquisite character. Use of the name “pu’er” or “pu’erh” has also been deemed a protected geographical indication (PGI) within China since 2008, and a 2021 China/EU agreement expanded its international recognition.

Pu’er tea can only be produced within designated areas in Yunnan province. This PGI creates further constrictions on producers of authentic pu’er in that they now have a more defined region from which they must procure leaf of various quality levels and sizes to follow blend recipes. The more highly prized pu’er often comes from celebrated mountains where tea trees have been growing for hundreds of years. Generally, the better the mountain’s reputation and the more ancient the source tea trees, the more valuable the pu’er.

Before delving further into the nuances of pu’er and counterfeit pu’er, it helps to have some definitions in place. Outside of China, “pu’er” may be used to refer to many different dark teas. Dark teas are teas that have undergone a pile fermentation process in which bacteria and enzymes break down elements like naturally occurring sugars and amino acids in the tea leaves. This process is different from oxidation, the more common process that is controlled to create green, black, and wulong (oolong) teas. Dark teas are produced in Yunnan province as well as other provinces. Hunan province, for example, is known for producing various styles of dark tea, but Hunan dark teas would not be considered pu’er teas in China. Additionally, lower grade pu’er products, like some fannings and bulk leaf products bound for the export market, may be manufactured in the pu’er style in places outside of the PGI designated areas. These lower value pu’er items are best understood by the import countries as a product reflecting shu (see below) pu’er flavour and character without the intent of infringing on PGI status or counterfeiting.

Pu’er teas come from designated areas within Yunnan province. PGI and China domestic designations specify that pu’er tea must meet several criteria, including:

• The leaf material must come from the designated pu’er areas;
• The type of leaf used;
• The processing methods used.

When these criteria are met, two kinds of pu’er can be produced:

• Raw, or “sheng” pu’er. Sheng pu’er is a greener leaf that is often pressed into cakes for the purpose of aging over years or decades. The fundamentals of the traditional sheng pu’er process have been used for centuries.
• Ripe or “shu” pu’er. Shu pu’ers and shu pu’er processing methods were developed roughly 50 years ago to replicate some of the look and characteristics of sheng pu’er. It can be thought of as a type of rapid aging process, but the result is considered inferior to a well-aged sheng pu’er.

Modern pu’er cake nei fei with anti-counterfeiting features. Image: Google/JW Kaler

On the counterfeiting side, forgers employ several methods to create fakes. The more egregious counterfeits copy the packaging of well-known pu’er brands. This involves copying the outer wrapper of the pu’er cake along with the nei fei (paper label pressed into the surface leaves of the pu’er cake) and the nei piao (paper ‘ticket’ placed on top of the cake before wrapping the cake. More modern pu’er cakes employ anti-counterfeiting measures on their internal and external packaging.

In addition to imitating famous brands, counterfeiters may also use substandard tea leaf or leaf from outside of the official pu’er area. The overall quality of the tea cake may be compromised, with higher quality leaves showing on the outside of the pressed pu’er cake, while broken and poor quality leaves are used below the surface of the pressed cake. Newer and lesser-known pu’er brands may also falsify information on the mountain or the age of the trees that the leaf material came from, knowing that older trees and specific mountain origins command higher prices.

The impact is vague

Counterfeiting pu’er may be a lucrative criminal business within China, but the impact outside of China is less clear. China’s annual production records provide a breakdown of overall dark teas produced each year. Export data is classified differently. In December 2020, the China Customs Tariff Commission of the State Council adjusted the export codes used to delineate exports of shu pu’er from other dark teas. No separate designation for sheng pu’ers was provided. Reports tell us that China consumed 364,000 metric tonnes (mt) of dark tea in 2022. The average price was 88.19 RMB per kg, compared to 160.99 RMB per kg for green tea.

Exports of shu pu’er totalled 1,916mt, or 0.5 percent of all 2022 tea exports. In comparison, 351mt of dark tea was exported. A further breakdown is harder to find, but well established pockets of pu’er and dark tea consumers can be found in Hong Kong, Taiwan, and Malaysia. These export destinations are also known to have communities of pu’er and dark tea collectors who seek out rare and high quality teas. The climates of these areas are considered ideal for naturally aging these teas.

Pu’er and dark tea consumers outside of China have a limited range of options to avoid purchasing counterfeit pu’er. For starters, it is the more expensive pu’er that gets copied, so one should exercise caution when purchasing pu’ers that are decades old with asking prices in the thousands of USD. In the United States and other countries that do not recognise PGI, problems also arise when “pu’er” gets used as a broad category term for a wider variety of dark teas. In such situations, a reputable vendor is important in verifying whether a pu’er product complies with GI standards used in China or the EU. When purchasing pu’er pressed cakes, experienced buyers have learned how to examine the inner and outer packaging (ie, the wrapper, nei fei, and nei piao) for evidence of forgery.

Counterfeit pu’er teas remain an ongoing problem, particularly for investment-grade pu’er cakes. However, opportunities to avoid fraudulent purchases exist where traceability of geographic indicated products and anti-counterfeiting packaging practices are properly scrutinised. In some regions of the world, better distinctions between dark tea and pu’er will also enable customers to better understand the kinds of teas they purchase.

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Tea has been enjoying its fair share of popularity since the last several decades – centuries, even – so much so that there are people whose day does not start in the true sense without taking a sip of hot tea. Plus, tea is known as a good antioxidant. 

With regard to flavoured tea, the very concept springs from the fact that ‘variety is the spice of life.’ Breaking the monotonous rut is what humankind cares the most about. Tea has come a long way over the last few years in terms of flavours and the way they are being devised and marketed. Starting with fruits, the flavours have made a beeline to flowers, alcohols, and several chemical compounds. For instance, amyl acetate, which gives banana flavour, is distilled from real bananas. The mixture of amyl alcohol and vinegar also gives banana flavour, but then it won’t be termed as ‘natural. Likewise, strawberry flavour could be devised naturally as well as artificially. 

The best part about tea leaves is that most are receptive to flavours. It has been found that green and black tea leaves go well with almost every type of flavour. Dry flavours do well with loose teas, whereas liquid ones work for the teabags.  

There are several variants regarding tea flavours as follows:  

• Natural Extracts: These flavours come from extracts of the essential oils of the blossoms, fruits, leaves, roots, and likewise. The basic function of these extracts is that of contributing to fragrance of teas.  
• Natural Granules: These granules, as the name suggests, come from natural essence that is spread on tea leaves all through. The mixing happens till blending with leaves happens. Most flavours come from granules comprising blossom, herb, and fruit extracts. Also, herbal infusions come as inclusions, which are solid particles of fruits, herbs, spices, and blossoms mixed with tea leaves on direct basis — when steeped, the right taste is obtained. 

• Nature-Close Flavours: These are the flavours extracted through chemical processes. There is not much difference between natural and nature-close flavours except for the extraction process. Preserving turns out to be simpler as compared to natural processes and cost-effective. It needs to be noted that here the extraction is artificial, not the flavour. 
• Artificial Flavours: The name is self-explanatory. The flavours are created artificially to make stronger and better blends. 

Another variety is that of scented tea. It is obtained from flowers like jasmine. Also, smoked tea is popular, which is processed around cypress or pine wood fires.  

Medical benefits of flavoured tea 

Tea has many healthy attributes such as being ‘chock full’ of antioxidants, polyphenols, and catechins, but there are also many medical benefits associated with various teas. 

Earl Grey tea, for example, is a popular flavour that is formed by blending bergamot oil and tea leaves. The medical benefits include improvement in dental health, reduction of anxiety, helping in digestion, increasing energy levels, and body detox. Elderflower tea, a flavoured tea that is especially popular in Europe, is derived from a cream-coloured flower (elderflower) of the elderberry plant. This tea is a rich source of vitamin A, C and several essential nutrients. Apart from Europe, North America is the other major consumer of elderflower tea. In terms of medical benefits, elderflower tea relieves from fever, cough, headache, and cold. The respiratory disorders like tonsillitis, asthma, laryngitis, and others could also be relieved by drinking elderflower tea. 

Though its origins could be traced to China, green tea’s popularity is unmatched across now. Japanese green teas are inclusive of hojicha, genmaicha, tencha, matcha, kabusecha, gyokuro, and sencha. Green tea is available in the form of iced green tea, green tea instant mixes, and green tea bags. The flavours include jasmine, wild berry, cinnamon, vanilla, lemon, and aloe vera. It helps in prevention of loads of ailments like tooth decay, diabetes, cancer, heart disorders by ascertain maintenance of proper blood level and cholesterol all over the body. 

The least processed leaves on the part of Camellia sinensis produce white tea. It comprises juvenile buds. The floral-fruity flavour finds its applications in various industries like pharmaceuticals and cosmetics. It does possess anti-microbial properties and acts as an excellent antioxidant. 

Those vying for clean label products will sync with detox tea, which is conventional as well as organic. Detox tea, as the name suggests, helps in intestinal detox, liver detox, cardiac detox, and likewise. 

Delving into flavoured tea 

By type, bubble tea could be categorised as chocolate, fruits and berries, mixed/blend flavours, and honey. It is popular in the Asia Pacific, India, in particular. The latest offerings include fresh ingredients like fresh fruit, organic cream, green tea, and soy milk. 

Amongst the instant tea mixes, encapsulated tea is trending in certain regions at the moment. Encapsulation is a technique to protect or entrap fragrance and flavours within a coating material. Encapsulated tea reduces the preparation time for the drink. The flavours available include cranberry, raspberry, mango, and lemonade. These flavours are captured by entrapping them within the tea leaves. 

As far as alcoholic tea is concerned, it comes in a wide range of flavours including coconut, mint, peach, cucumber, lime, sweet apricot, mango, and berries.  

In a nutshell, flavoured tea will continue to evolve as the taste buds of consumers will ask for more variations and there would be no stoppage to research being conducted therein. 

• Divakar Kolhe is a tech blogger, is a seasoned digital marketing professional, having worked for numerous online firms in his distinguished career. He believes in continuous learning, considering that the digital marketing sector’s rapidly evolving nature. His forte is analysing the commercial viability of a new breakthrough. 

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Consolidated net revenues were USD $9.2 billion, an increase of 12% from the prior year, or 14%, inclusive of more than 1% unfavourable impact from foreign currency translation.

The Seattle, Washington-based company disclosed that global comparable-store sales increased 10%, primarily driven by a 5% increase in comparable transactions and a 4% increase in average ticket. North America and U.S. comparable-store sales increased 7%, driven by a 6% increase in average ticket and a 1% increase in comparable transactions. International comp-store sales increased 24%, driven by a 21% increase in comparable transactions and a 2% increase in average ticket. Within China, comp-store sales surged 46%, driven by a 48% increase in comparable transactions and a 1% decline in average ticket.

GAAP operating margin of 17.3% increased from 15.9% in the prior year, primarily driven by sales leverage, pricing and productivity improvement. This expansion was partially offset by previously committed investments in labour, including enhanced store partner wages and benefits and higher general and administrative costs related to Starbucks’ Reinvention Plan. GAAP earnings per share of $0.99 grew 25% over the prior year.

Non-GAAP operating margin of 17.4% increased from 16.9% in the prior year. Non-GAAP earnings per share of $1.00 grew 19% over prior year

Net revenues for the North America segment grew 11% over Q3 FY22 to $6.7 billion in Q3 FY23, primarily driven by a 7% increase in company-operated comparable store sales, driven by a 6% increase in average ticket and a 1% increase in comparable transactions, net new company-operated store growth of 4% over the past 12 months, as well as strength in our licensed store sales.

Operating income increased to $1.5 billion in Q3 FY23 compared to $1.3 billion in Q3 FY22. Operating margin of 21.7% contracted from 22.0% in the prior year, primarily driven by previously committed investments in labour, including enhanced store partner wages and benefits as well as increased spending on partner training. This contraction was partially offset by strategic pricing, productivity improvement and sales leverage.

Net revenues for the International segment grew 24% over Q3 FY22 to $2.0 billion in Q3 FY23, primarily driven by a 24% increase in comparable store sales, net new company-operated store growth of 11% over the past 12 months, as well as growth in our licensed store revenue including higher product sales and royalty revenues. These increases were partially offset by approximately 5% unfavourable impact from foreign currency translation.

Operating income increased to $374.5 million in Q3 FY23 compared to $135.3 million in Q3 FY22. Operating margin of 19.0% expanded from 8.5% in the prior year, primarily driven by sales leverage including lapping mobility restrictions in China and prior year amortization expenses. This expansion was offset by digital investments and inflationary pressures.
Net revenues for the Channel Development segment decreased 6% over Q3 FY22 to $448.8 million in Q3 FY23, driven by a decline in revenue in the Global Coffee Alliance.

Operating income increased to $208.0 million in Q3 FY23 compared to $191.7 million in Q3 FY22. Operating margin of 46.3% expanded from 40.0% in the prior year, primarily driven by growth in our North American Coffee Partnership joint venture income and mix shift.

Noting the results, Laxman Narasimhan, CEO, said, “Our strong third quarter results point to all-around momentum in the business and reflect the significant progress we are making against our Reinvention Plan. Our results were also amplified by the distinctive competitive advantages that set us apart in the market.”

Starbucks opened 588 net new stores in Q3, crossing the 37,000 store count threshold globally, ending the period with 37,222 stores: 51% company-operated and 49% licensed. At the end of Q3, stores in the U.S. and China comprised 61% of the company’s global portfolio, with 16,144 and 6,480 stores in the U.S. and China, respectively.

Starbucks Rewards loyalty program 90-day active members in the U.S. increased to 31.4 million, up 15% year-over-year.

In May, Starbucks opened the first store in Paraguay, entering the 24th market in Latin America and the Caribbean and 86th market globally. The company also opened its first store in Rome, in May, in partnership with Percassi, its Italian licensee partner. In June, the company announced plans to expand their farm capability beyond coffee to include a new sustainability learning and innovation lab at Hacienda Alsacia in Costa Rica, the global agronomy headquarters for research and development.

Starbucks executives said the company’s financial results and long-term growth model will continue to be driven by new store openings, comparable store sales growth and operating margin management.

Rachel Ruggeri, CFO, commented, “I am pleased with our third quarter performance, which beat our expectations, including our International segment. Our performance was bolstered by the progress we are making against our strategies, specifically our Reinvention Plan, and its unfolding into tangible financial results, as we delivered earnings growth of 19% well above our revenue growth of 12%.” She added, “the momentum we have built and strength we are seeing globally, gives us the confidence and optimism to close our fiscal year strong.”

Seeking Alpha analyst Dilantha De Silva stated that he is skeptical of Starbucks’ “ambitious plan to achieve 7%-9% annual comparable-store sales growth through fiscal 2025.” However, he did note that the company has room to grow in the U.S., especially in smaller cities that have yet to be explored by the coffee chain. He added, “China is considered one of the biggest markets for tea, but there are clear signs of a growing coffee culture in the country. This is an opportunity for Starbucks.”

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Coffee grew 5%, primarily driven by the strong performance of Costa® coffee in the United Kingdom and China. Tea grew 1%, primarily driven by growth in Latin America, partially offset by a decline in doğadan® in Türkiye. North America unit case volume declined 1%, as growth in sparkling flavours and juice, value-added dairy and plant-based beverages was more than offset by declines in water, sports, coffee and tea as well as Trademark Coca-Cola®.

Net revenues grew 6% to USD $12.0 billion, and organic revenues (non-GAAP) grew 11%. Revenue performance included 10% growth in price/mix and 1% growth in concentrate sales. Concentrate sales were 1 point ahead of unit case volume, largely due to the timing of concentrate shipments.

Operating margin was 20.1% versus 20.7% in the prior year, while comparable operating margin (non-GAAP) was 31.6% versus 30.7% in the prior year. Operating margin decline was primarily driven by items impacting comparability and currency headwinds. Comparable operating margin (non-GAAP) expansion was primarily driven by strong topline growth and the impact of refranchising bottling operations, partially offset by an increase in marketing investments and higher operating costs versus the prior year, as well as currency headwinds.

EPS (earning per share) grew 34% to $0.59, and comparable EPS (non-GAAP) grew 11% to $0.78. Comparable EPS (non-GAAP) performance included the impact of a 6-point currency headwind.

In terms of market share, Coca-Cola gained value share in total nonalcoholic ready-to-drink (NARTD) beverages.

Cash flow from operations was $4.6 billion year-to-date, an increase of $83 million versus the prior year, driven by strong business performance and working capital initiatives, partially offset by the transition tax payment made during the second quarter. Free cash flow (non-GAAP) was $4.0 billion year-to-date, a decline of $45 million versus the prior year.

“I am encouraged that our all-weather strategy, working together with our bottling partners, has delivered strong second quarter results,” said James Quincey, chairman and CEO of Atlanta, Georgia-based The Coca-Cola Company. “We are executing efficiently and effectively on a local level, while maintaining flexibility on a global level. The strength of our first half results and the resiliency of our business gives us the confidence to raise our 2023 guidance.”

To support the company’s goal to reduce carbon emissions by 25% by 2030, against a 2015 baseline, The Coca-Cola Company and eight leading global bottling partners created a first-of-its-kind sustainability-focused $137.7 million venture capital fund in partnership with Greycroft, a seed-to-growth venture capital firm. The fund aligns with the company’s networked approach to sustainability and has the potential to help advance solutions across its global value chain by investing in sustainability-focused companies at the point of commercialisation. Reducing the Coca-Cola system’s carbon footprint is a top priority for the fund, so it will initially prioritise five key areas with the most potential impact: packaging, heating and cooling, facility decarbonisation, distribution and supply chain.

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A unique combination of tea bush varietals, plucking standards and tea making craftsmanship, revealed to the West at the Panama Pacific International Expo in 1915 and relaunched in the new millennium, white teas continue attracting attention and followers all over the tea world. 

The usual way of introducing the many famous teas from China is to enshrine them within six categories that basically refer to the colour of the brew, with green teas being the biggest one in production volume, followed by oolong teas, dark teas, black teas, white and yellow teas. Sometimes, an additional category is quoted as the scented teas, made by the impregnation of the green, black, dark or oolong tea leaves with flowers, like jasmine, rose, osmanthus, orchid and more. 

These distinctive categories of teas are an intrinsic part of the traditional tea processing techniques and associated practices in China that were approved for inclusion into the UNESCO list of Intangible Cultural Heritage in December 2022. 

White teas are an outstanding category that remains tiny and sought after. Data from the China Tea Marketing Association shows that white teas represent approximately 1 percent of the country’s tea output, with yellow teas representing even less, about 0.5 percent, and both categories are hailed as exclusive and rare heritage and terroir teas. 

According to expert reports, white teas were introduced to Western markets in the late 19th century. They have been praised amongst other premium teas when China, as a newly established republic after the demise of the last Qing Emperor in 1911, attended the Panama Pacific International Expo in 1915. Their beautiful leaf and elegant cups have spurred demand and China’s tea farmers have followed up by creating new cultivars and further quality grades to increase output. 

The origin of white teas 

Why are these teas called white teas? Because the buds, which are very tall, are densely covered by downy white villosities that give them a white appearance and which remain through the unfolding into the young leaf. It is afterwards, with the leaf growing bigger, that the colour turns into a lush and shiny green. Hence, the terminology that refers to bai hao, translating into white down, da bai, translating into big white, yin zhen translating into silver needle, and bai mudan, translating into white peony. This reference to the white colour and the silvery aspect of the buds and young leaves is the key element for understanding and identifying these exceptional teas. 

White teas were discovered growing naturally in the North East of Fujian province, in the district of Fuding, which is the most famous, as well as in Zhenghe, and they were then introduced to Jianyang and Songxi, which are nearby. Chinese textbooks call this a ‘landrace’, and they were named Fuding Dabai and Bai Hao and Zhenghe Dabai, and Bai Hao as traditional local varietals that develop big downy white buds and downy young leaves. 

Tea science and research have taken advantage of these exceptional qualities and there has been important crossbreeding allowing the development of more than 30 new cultivars since the years 1985. These new cultivars share some of the Fuding Dabei bush leaf qualities such as the Fu Yun series – for ‘Fuding and Yunnan’ – have then been introduced into other growing areas to increase production of white buds and whitish young leaves. 

However, the origin terroir remains important as it conveys the geographical reference, which explains why a ‘Fuding Silver Needle Tea’ is more highly priced than a ‘Silver Needle’ from any another location. This landrace was discovered in Fuding for the first time, which makes Fuding the home town of white tea. A tea conference was organised in Fuding on 1 December 2022, coordinated by the China Chamber of Commerce for Food (CCFNA). With virtual input from domestic and international stakeholders, the remit of this event was to explore new marketing strategies for promoting these exceptional terroir teas more proactively in the near future. Professor Han Wenyan from the China Tea Research Institute underlined the importance of identifying more natural local landrace material, which will provide the possibility to further enlarge the collection of tea plant varietals. For example, a new local white tea bush variety was identified in 2017 and science is working on this file. 

Quality grades of white teas 

In Western markets, where people do not normally read Chinese characters, many may not be aware of the various technical product description details; therefore, one will want to be sure that the tea purchased and the price paid are appropriate. The main criteria consumers will want to know are where the tea garden is located, the plucking grade/ plucking date, and of course, the landrace or cultivar of the Camellia sinensis var sinensis bushes that have been harvested. Indicating these elements in the product description is a guarantee of authenticity and quality and will encourage tea lovers to follow their suppliers with joy and trust. 

The premium grade, which is the Silver Needle tea, is made by plucking only the bud. It is important to note that these first spring buds are available for only a very limited period and that about 120,000 buds are required for 1 kg of finished tea, which is why these cups are not only rare but also pricy. 

The second grade allows the plucking of the bud plus one, two or even three leaves, which must still be a bit downy, ie, very young. The second grade, known as Bai Mudang or White Peony tea, is still a spring harvest, and is of very good quality. Launched in 1922, this new grade of white tea allows for plucking during the weeks that follow the early harvest of the Silver Needle buds. 

The third grade is the summer harvest from the same tea bushes, which are leaves that are deeper in colour, but it is still considered a white tea. The name of this third harvest is Shou Mei or Gong Mei, which translates to ‘longevity eyebrow’ and ‘tribute eyebrow’. 

All three grades are available for export but also sought after in the home market mainly for their reported health benefits and physiological effects such as antioxidant properties, anti-viral effects, detoxifying and fever relief properties, but also because they are highly refreshing and relaxing in hot summer times. Widely acknowledged in China these reported health benefits come from the high polyphenol and theanine concentration in this very young plant material, which has undergone a gentle tea making process.  

Gentle processing 

White teas are the least processed leaves and buds, as they only undergo sun withering for about three days to reduce moisture, followed by a gentle drying over soft charcoal baskets. It is important to note that white teas are neither rolled nor fired. To maintain their silvery white down, they are just gently withered and softly dried, always carefully spread out on bamboo baskets to avoid any bruising. This subtle process allows all the juices to remain in the cells, which transfers the outstanding qualities to these cups. To release the molecules into the brew, white teas need a longer brewing time, and can also be infused several times. An additional bonus from this gentle way of processing the plant material is the fruitful and easy aging of the white teas since the enzymes are still alive. which allows exceptional taste notes to develop in the premium vintage white teas. 

White teas from other producing countries 

The challenge to make silver needle and white peony teas has spread to many other tea-producing areas like Indonesia, Rwanda, India’s Darjeeling, Kenya, and Malawi, among others. It is a matter of proudly showing the producers’ craftsmanship but also using appropriate plant material. In order to provide some guidelines and framework, the ISO sub- committee for tea issued a technical report in December 2013, ISO/TR 1259, which introduced a definition of white tea that is focused on the plucking standard, limited to bud-only and bud plus leaf and on the very gentle ways of processing; to note that there are no specific origin requirements. 

Considering all these elements and with his over forty years of experience in retailing fine Chinese Teas in Paris France, Vivien Messavent, aka Yun Jing Zhong, confirmed that the wonders of the white teas continue to fascinate consumers. Rare and precious cups, they are very costly to manufacture. Hence, it is not easy for new producers to compete with the longstanding Chinese traditions. Although there are white teas from black and green tea-producing countries available, he is convinced that China will continue to dominate this premium niche market. 

• Barbara Dufrêne is the former Secretary General of the European Tea Committee and editor of La Nouvelle du Thé. She may be reached at: b-dufrêne@orange.fr. 

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To meet this demand, Nestlé Professional has been increasing its range of plant-based dairy alternatives for food service professionals, leveraging Nestlé’s global R&D expertise on plant-based innovation. It is also sharing that expertise with baristas and other out-of-home providers with a series of webinars led by the team of Nestlé Professional.

New additions

A focus of recent out of home launches has been in Asia; a Nestlé Barista plant-based coconut drink was launched in Thailand earlier this year, primarily for use in cold beverages to meet consumer tastes there.

In China, Nestlé has launched two new plant-based dairy alternatives in the past year – one pea- and one oat-based – under the Nestlé Barista brand. The drinks were developed by baristas and can be used in hot and cold coffee and tea applications that meet local tastes.

Furthermore, a barista-focused dairy alternative made with peas was launched under the Nestlé Barista brand and launched in South Korea, Taiwan, and Singapore.

In Latin America, the Nature’s Heart Barista plant-based oat drink was launched in Brazil at the end of 2022 for hot and cold applications. The beverage is easy to steam and pour – making it perfect for latte art.

The Nature’s Heart brand also rolled out a powdered plant-based creamer based on rice, designed for Nescafé automatic machines. This new product enables customers with self-service machines to be able to offer plant-based drinks to their consumers as well.

As Manuel Aleman, global category lead coffee ingredients & plant-based beverages at Nestlé Professional, explained, “The trend towards more plant-based options remains, with around 40% of consumers around the world already moving to a diet with less or no animal products. Taste is key for people to choose and stay in the category, especially flexitarians who are an important target group for dairy alternatives in out of home.”

In addition to the recently launched out-of-home offerings, Nestlé has a strong and growing portfolio of plant-based alternatives to dairy that people can use at home. A recent addition in the retail space are the oat and fava plant-based beverages which were launched in the US under the natural bliss brand.

R&D capabilities for dairy alternatives

With wide-ranging innovation expertise in both dairy products and alternatives to dairy, Nestlé is equipped to deliver relevant solutions for out-of-home use across different countries.

Zenon Mandralis, head of R&D for Nestlé Professional said, “Our goal is to offer baristas and our customers plant-based alternatives that are very easy to froth, making the perfect latte or cappuccinos. Our scientists, product developers and baristas work together to ensure that the products are also great-tasting and nutritious, with the right foam texture, mouthfeel, and appearance.”

This work is primarily driven by R&D experts at Nestlé’s largest research and development center for milk and milk alternatives in Konolfingen, Switzerland. The center collaborates closely with the Nestlé Professional R&D team in Orbe, Switzerland to ensure that the products are adapted for use in professional machines at cafés, bars and restaurants worldwide. Through Nestlé’s regional innovation centers, including in China, the products are further tailored to local taste preferences, beverage menu variety, and dietary needs.

Plant-based expertise for food service professionals

Nestlé Professional shares its experience with food service customers in regular webinars. In its latest iteration, it will be sharing Nestlé Professional know-how and insights on plant-based beverage dairy alternatives at a live ‘Plant-Based and So Good’ webinar via Zoom on 7 June, 2023.

Register for the webinar here.

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Today, 15% of coffee in the world is drunk cold, with the majority of this consumed by younger people, especially Generation Z. In line with this trend, there is rising demand for products that allow people to recreate café-style cold coffee experiences in the home.

Nescafé Ice Roast is launching in China this month, with Mexico to follow. Working closely with Nestlé’s coffee business and its markets, experts at Nestlé’s coffee R&D center in Orbe Switzerland, crafted this new product from bean to cup.

Starting with 100% Robusta coffee beans, grown and produced sustainably, Nestlé’s teams tailored the roasting profile for a lightly roasted soluble coffee without harsh or bitter notes. They optimised the extraction process for a refreshing taste and clear appearance in the cup and perfected the coffee granule structure, so it dissolves quickly and easily.

Damien Tissot, head of Nestlé’s Product Technology Center Coffee in Orbe, Switzerland, said: “With Ice Roast, we’ve created a light-medium roast that’s ideal to drink cold, with a smooth texture and cocoa notes that unlocks new sensory territory. By applying an innovative mindset, our teams have created a new sensory experience in cold coffee.”

Donald Howat, global category lead for Nescafé, said: “Cold coffee is hot, with a new generation of coffee drinkers entering the category through cold. We’re really excited by this launch, because Ice Roast gives them the opportunity to enjoy an even better cup of cold coffee at home and recreate their favorite drinks.”

Other recent launches include Nescafé Black Roast, Nestlé’s most intense coffee ever, and Nescafé Roastery Collection, a super-premium soluble coffee. Currently sold in Nigeria, Nescafé Malty is an accessible 3-in-1 blend that balances Nescafé coffee with millet malt, for a rich, creamy blend suited to local tastes.

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Black tea still leads in terms of global production volume, but green tea has seen a slight but gradual gain in share over the last 10 years. According to the London-based International Tea Committee (ITC), the share of green tea production has increased from about 30 percent to 33 percent. Estimates put the world’s total green tea production at 2.1 million metric tonnes (mmt) in 2021.

China drives green tea production, contributing over 1.8 mmt. This makes the Middle Kingdom the provider of over 85 percent of the world’s green tea. In relation to its own production, however, green tea comprises about 60 percent of its total annual production. Green tea holds the largest share in terms of China’s output, with black tea being the next closest at about 14 percent of annual China production. It is worth noting, however, that China’s classification system for teas distinguishes between green tea and flower tea. Because of this, all forms of jasmine green tea – from specialty jasmine green pearl teas to jasmine green tea fannings – are not counted towards the green tea totals but are designated as flower teas. Depending on interpretation, this can serve to under-report the actual amount of green tea produced.

Japan is the next best-known home of green tea production, contributing about 0.8 mmt of green tea per year. The majority of Japan’s green tea comes in two forms. Sencha accounts for a little over one half, and bancha makes up more than a third. Matcha (tencha) and gyokuro each contribute less than 4 percent of the total volume but their average value in USD per kg is more than double that of sencha.

Other well-known tea-producing countries, including India, Argentina, Indonesia, Sri Lanka, Turkey, and Vietnam either do not parse out green tea production from black, or mainly focus on reporting green tea exports.

China leads in exports

As may be expected, China also dominates in green tea exports. China’s 2021 green tea exports totaled 0.31 MMT, or nearly 85 percent of China’s total exports. Value-wise, however, green tea exports represent roughly 60 percent of China’s exports. China’s average annual export rates reached USD $5.55/kg, with green tea averaging $4.44/kg compared to black tea at $10.25/kg. China’s main export partner has remained Morocco for several years now, as the country has relatively high per-capita tea consumption and a longstanding tradition of drinking green tea (eg Moroccan mint tea).

Vietnam appears to be one of the next largest green tea exporters, though nowhere close to China’s volume. In 2021, Vietnam exported 62,000 mt of green tea, or just shy of half of the nation’s total exports. Vietnam’s top tea export destinations include Pakistan, The Republic of China (ROC), and Russia. It is unclear as to the share of green tea exports among these countries, especially when Pakistan and Russia are known for purchasing significantly more black tea than green.

Japan, on the other hand, exported over 6,000 mt of predominantly green tea. As mentioned above, Japan’s production is largely divided between sencha and bancha. About one-third of Japan’s green tea exports went to the US.

Indonesia, Sri Lanka and India each exported between 5,500 and 3,000 mt of green tea. Indonesia’s major tea export partners include Malaysia, Russia, and the US. Sri Lanka’s top export destinations include Iraq, Turkey, and Russia. India’s three largest tea export countries include Russia, Iran, and the United Arab Emirates (UAE)

US imports of green tea grows

Of the world’s top three tea-importing countries (Pakistan, Russia, and the US), the US provides the clearest picture of green tea imports. Of Russia’s 135,000 mt of imported tea, at least 85 percent of it is black tea. Similarly, tea imports into the US in 2022 showed about 14 percent, or 16,618 mt was green tea. Of that total, nearly 7,000 mt originated from China. A further dissection of US green tea imports reveals that 1,800 mt was organic green tea, of which about 1,000 mt came from China.

Producing countries consume the most tea

Considering that the world’s top two producing countries (China and India) generally keep about 85 percent of their produced tea within their borders, these countries hold sway over global green tea consumption. China’s domestic sales of green tea reached 1.3 mmt. During that period, China only imported about 4,300 mt of green tea.

India’s green tea volumes also remained available for the domestic market. As with China, at least 85 percent of India’s total tea production volume didn’t leave the country. This proportion held true for green tea as well. About 15 percent of India’s green production was exported, leaving about 85 percent within its borders.

The US also held relatively steady in an 85/15 split of black-to-green tea consumption, with more emphasis placed on iced tea.

In relation to per capita consumption of tea, some of the major countries increased their consumption over the past ten years. Most notably was Morocco, a major green tea consumer, which increased an estimated 15 percent per head. China’s per capita also saw a significant rise from just shy of 1 kg per head to roughly 1.75 kg.

The outlook for green tea is positive

Compared to black tea, green tea consumption still appears modest but with positive signs for the future. The UK has seen declines in black tea consumption, while green tea has remained relatively steady. Green tea in the US also holds promise, as consumers are attracted to the reported health benefits of green tea.

The Japanese tea industry still sees potential for the further expansion of matcha exports, with matcha being viewed by international markets as a more premium and health-forward tea option. The nation has seen decreases in production of leaf tea and increases in powdered teas and teas used for RTD. The Japanese government has established initiatives to upgrade tea farms, modernize tea harvesting and processing, and promote Japanese teas in the US, Europe, and Asia Pacific.

China’s expansion of new tea fields also indicates a continued trend toward steady production of green teas. China’s internal estimates classify about one third of the nation’s current tea plants as over 30 years old and recommend removing or replacing these less-productive bushes. A gradual phasing out of old fields and the advent of new fields coming online will help keep China on top as a green tea powerhouse.

• Jason Walker is marketing director of Firsd Tea North America. Prior to his work with Firsd Tea, Walker served in a variety of roles in tea and beverage business capacities. His experience includes business services for small tea companies, a top-ranked online destination for tea consumer education and co-founding a coffee business. His insights draw upon his diverse range of experience in sales, operations and management in the tea world. He may be reached at: jason.walker@firsdtea.com.

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In the Western world, black tea is still the most consumed tea beverage, particularly by older demographics. However, consumption levels remain substantially below production, resulting in a market where black tea has become highly undervalued. There needs to be significant changes within the industry, including a substantial expansion of the consumer base, to increase the value and create a sustainable market for black tea.

Low prices pose significant challenges to sustainability

“Black tea is hugely undervalued, it is being sold for barely the cost of production, and that is on a good day — it is usually below the cost of production,” said Shabnam Weber, president, Tea and Herbal Association of Canada. “Brands are placing a higher value on their green tea products, even in circumstances where both their black and green tea haven’t been blended with any other products and are in similar packaging.”

Although there has been an elevated interest in other teas and infusions, black tea remains the category sustaining most of the tea industry in the Western world. “When we are talking about wanting fair pricing and sustainability, we cannot get there without black tea,” said Weber. “To obtain these goals, there needs to be more money in the pot so that it can be distributed across the supply chain.”

Image: Vahdam Tea

Peter Goggi, president, Tea Association of the USA, agreed, emphasising that the price of tea is not sustainable, making it increasingly difficult for farmers to survive. “There is way too much tea in the world, and there are only two ways to take care of that: either increase consumption or reduce the amount of tea that is produced,” he said. Reducing production levels will profoundly impact those countries that depend on tea as a primary industry. However, increasing consumption levels is a complex task.

“In the USA, we are still undeveloped in terms of the number of people drinking tea,” said Goggi. “85 percent of people drink tea, but not every other day, so it’s about converting that daily consumption into reality.” When it comes to consumption levels at origin, there is also room for growth. Countries like China and Kenya have little to zero consumption of black tea. South America, which includes several coffee-consuming countries, is another market that black tea could potentially tap into.

Increasing the overall quality and, in turn, the value of black tea is another way to help drive the product’s price up. “The specialty tea arena has demonstrated that consumers are willing to pay for tea, and so, there is no doubt that we need to raise the overall quality of tea being sold and, in turn, charge for it,” said Goggi. One of the side benefits of focusing on quality is that it naturally reduces the quantity of tea produced as the producers will not be plucking as far down the bush.

In the US, black tea remains the most common beverage, with iced being the most popular American preparation method. “Covid helped the overall tea market in the United States; it is valued, practically by millennials, Gen Z and Gen Xers as a destressor,” said Goggi. “People were drinking more tea at home, and this trend seems to be continuing, the growth of hot tea in the United States is happening.” In addition, the wellness trend has helped to accelerate the growth of black tea in the American market, with consumers gravitating towards the beverage for its taste and health properties.

“We are still very much a black tea-drinking nation, and rank in the top five tea consuming countries, per capita,” said Sharon Hall, chief executive of the UK Tea & Infusions Association (UKTIA). “But the percentage of black tea consumption is decreasing, with standard black tea accounting for 50 percent of the category. Seventy-four percent of the UK nation reported drinking some form of black tea during the day, with 40 percent drinking a cup several times a day. The key drivers for black tea in the UK are taste and, for the 18-29 demographic, the desire for a warm beverage. However, an increasing proportion of the population is shifting towards other warm drinks, with 55% reporting drinking green tea and 47 percent drinking herbal infusions. True tea sales value fell by over 6.0 percent to £578 million (2021 vs 2020), however, decaffeinated tea did continue to grow in value (1.3 percent) to almost £68.5 million.

“Over the past few years, particularly across the pandemic, we’ve witnessed increasing interest in products prioritising both planetary and human health. Ethics and the environment are high up on consumers’ agendas, supporting a rise in demand for organic and Fairtrade products,” shared Adele Ward, Clipper Teas marketing director, which is owned by Ecotone, UK. “We are also seeing a significant increase in demand for our Organic Decaffeinated Black Tea, which uses the natural CO2 process for decaffeination.”

Image: TAZO Tea

The need for innovation

Black teas remain a huge part of Vadham India’s overall portfolio because traditional tea consumption has always been dominant in the black tea category across India and other geographies. Vahdam has seen a growth of 5-10 percent in its black tea sales across all channels. “There’s been a change in outlook toward the consumption of tea, a growing prominence of black teas in cafés and QSRs, and a change in leisure drink habits across age groups leaning towards tea,” said Bala Sarda, founder and CEO of Vahdam Tea. “This has resulted in a higher demand for black tea worldwide.”

Continual innovation in the black tea category is critical, shared Sarda, to respond to the changing pattern of consumers actively seeking more from their beverages, whether it’s wellness, flavour, or newer formats, like lattes. “Vahdam’s formulations and format innovations have repositioned black tea as a preferred wellness beverage for the new-age millennials and Gen Z consumers, who are looking for an alternative that is contemporary yet clean, stylish yet sustainable and healthy yet high-fashion,” he said.

Health perceptions are skewed towards green

The continued interest in health and wellness has helped drive the demand for tea; in fact, it remains one of the critical drivers for consuming green tea in the Western world. However, one of the challenges in Canada, shared Weber, is that there remains a disconnect between black tea and its health benefits. “Every time we survey people’s perception of the health of the tea, black tea always ranks at the very bottom,” said Weber. “Canadians are quicker to associate the benefits of flavonoids with herbal teas before black tea. So, there’s a huge disconnect that’s happening, there is no question that green tea has had a head start, but the fact that the herbals are outranking black tea is shocking.”

Although the USA has been good about sharing the tea and health message, more needs to occur to help drive the consumption levels. “We need human studies to demonstrate an improvement of health in the population,” said Goggi. “That is the holy grail to get that structure/function claim; then we could state claims like drinking tea helps you to prevent cancer.”

Image: teapigs

However, these messages may fail to connect with the younger generations.

“Cardiovascular health, metabolic, and bone health, which are all significant benefits that black tea provides. However, I’m not sure that the younger generation is really in that headspace at the moment,” said Hall. “We must find ways to fit black tea into their lifestyle and understand how it will work for them.” Potential messages that could connect with the younger generations suggested Hall, are hydration, specifically as a pre- or post-exercise beverage, and highlighting how black tea can be consumed as an alternative to alcohol.

“As a category, black tea declined by 5.6 percent versus two years ago. Despite this, organic and Fairtrade tea is up by 0.3, in line with positive changes to consumer habits,” said Ward. “We’re confident that tea will remain a staple for years to come, not only for its taste but for its link to taking a break — especially in line with younger consumers who are increasingly prioritising wellness. As a brand, we’re always looking for ways we can bring new younger consumers to the category by offering this, alongside our fun identity.”

This includes increasing focus on black tea promotions through traditional and social media channels to drive demand and increase consumer awareness. “I don’t know if that is because the tea market has become dominated by black tea for decades that we’ve kind of taken it for granted, thinking people will always drink it,” said Weber. “You can’t take it for granted; you must celebrate the goodness of black tea.”

The reality is that black tea is competing with a growing number of beverages, making it increasingly challenging to draw younger demographics towards this beverage, which is in desperate need of a facelift. However, failing to connect with younger demographics places the black tea sector at risk of disappearing. Attracting and maintaining the interest of the younger consumer is essential to both drive demand and enable the market to increase the price (and in turn the value) of black tea. “The positioning of black tea as a culturally important part of our lifestyle is essential to have a sustainable industry; this includes getting millennials to drink black tea so that they encourage the tea-drinking habit in the next generation, alpha,” said Hall. “Otherwise, we’re not going to create a new generation of tea consumers.”

• Anne-Marie Hardie is a freelance writer, professor and speaker based in Barrie, Ontario. She may be reached at: annemariehardie1@gmail.com.

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In spite of global warming and frequent unfavourable weather episodes, output continues to increase within the major tea-producing areas, whilst consumption is not keeping pace, which is generating a gap between supply and demand. This was explained by the International Tea Committee (ITC) Chairman Ian Gibbs during the North American Tea Conference last fall, with an ITC chart covering the past 20 years and showing a well-matched growth of production that was fully absorbed by consumption from years 2001 to 2013. Since then global production continues to grow, but global demand is lagging behind.

With widely acknowledged labour shortage, ever increasing production costs, depressed prices at farm gate level and often adverse weather conditions, the feedback from the various origin countries requires a more focused look at the local economic and topographic conditions. Tea is highly diversified, with its cups ranging from fast moving consumer goods in the mass market segment to highly priced premium leaf in specialty niche markets, and consumer preferences and tea drinking habits vary widely between the continents.

Production continues to rise

The most recent ITC Annual Bulletin of Statistics outlines the developments from 2012 through 2021, with an overall production increase resulting in a world total volume of 6.455 million metric tonnes (mt) of tea, ie, up by 37 percent, since 2012, which is considerable. Since the early 2000s, the world’s three biggest tea producers are China, India and Kenya.

In 2021, China’s output stood at just over three million mt, which represents 47.5 percent of the global volume and shows an increase of 71 percent over the past decade, with a steadily rising domestic consumption calculated to stand currently at 1.78 kg per head.

In India, which had been the world’s number one tea producer until 2006, the 2021 tea output of 1.343 million mt represented 21 percent of the global volume, up 19 percent since 2012. India’s calculated annual per capita tea consumption of 0.81 kg.

Kenya, which has been among the top three global tea producers since it replaced Sri Lanka in 2007, had an output of 0.538 million mt in 2021, had had a growth of 45 percent since 2012. It represents 8 percent of the global volume that is geared mainly to the export market.

The subsequent positions as longstanding major tea producers are Sri Lanka (fourth with 0.299 million mt), Turkey (fifth with 0.282 million mt), Vietnam (sixth with 0.180 million mt, and Indonesia (seventh 0.127 million mt) all data referring to 2021. These seven origin countries have been supplying 88 percent of the global output in 2012, and increased their share of the global supply volume to 90 percent in 2021.

Considering that there are currently 37 countries involved in commercially significant tea production, the figures above show an important concentration. Furthermore, there are countries that continue to lose tonnage like Indonesia, Argentina and Japan, whilst others harvest significantly increasing volume like Uganda and Bangladesh. Political troubles weigh heavily on Sri Lanka’s tea economy and the war between Ukraine and Russia is affecting the traditional trade flow patterns.

Consumption lags production

There are a many changes on the consumption side as well, starting with continued growth of domestic consumption in many producing countries, which impacts the availability of tea for export. According to ITC data, the percentage of the global tea production in volume that is available for export globally dropped from 37.7 percent in 2012 to 29.8 percent in 2021, which is less than one third of the global output. Hence the volume of tea that was traded in 2021 amounted to 1.923 million mt, compared to the total output of 6,455 million mt.

It’s important to note that tea trade is primarily the export to such countries, where tea growing is not possible or only possible in small areas. However, some consumer countries refine some of their imported teas for re-export, often as branded premium, which is the case particularly in the United Kingdom, Germany, France, and in Morocco. In addition, there is also some trade between producing countries and which is on the rise, with China importing from India, Sri Lanka, Vietnam and Kenya mainly, whilst Japan imports from China, Sri Lanka, India and Kenya, and Turkey imports from Sri Lanka, et cetera.

In 2021, the biggest tea importing markets were Pakistan with 247,000 mt, the Russian Federation plus the CIS countries with 236,000 mt, followed by the USA with 115,000 mt, Egypt with 99,000 mt, the UK with 92,000 mt, and Morocco with 71,000mt (the data refers to imports for home consumption). With the pandemic hampering operations and the political conflicts impacting traditional trade flows, some reshuffling is under way to readjust demand and supply.

Recent investments by foreign tea operators, like companies from Sri Lanka and Japan which set up production in East Africa, and Taiwanese companies that invest in China and New Zealand may generate more new developments in the coming years.

Black teas vs green teas vs other teas

Longstanding habits of black-tea drinkers fashioned by British colonial traditions, be it with or without milk, are ingrained in Europe and North America as well as in many African and Central Asian consumer markets. Green tea consumption remains deep rooted and dominant in all the ‘tea cradle countries’: China, Japan, Taiwan, Korea and Vietnam.

The latter have produced 97 percent of the global green tea production, which amounted to 2.094 million mt in 2021. China is by far the biggest producer, consumer and exporter of green tea, with 0.312 million mt exported in 2021, the top customer being Morocco, followed by Uzbekistan, Ghana, Mauritania, Algeria, the Russian Federation, and Germany. The main export product is gunpowder green tea, a tightly rolled leaf of genuine green tea, which the Chinese call “Zhu cha”, aka pearl tea, because of the neatly rolled shape. Originating mainly from Zhejiang, province, where the flat tea estates allow for mechanical harvesting, these teas are then shipped from Shanghai. Twining, the oldest British tea brand, now owned by Allied Foods, operates a green tea factory there.

Although easy-to-brew mainstream green teas have been intensely promoted since the early 2000s, Western consumers have not yet developed any outstanding preference for them. Globally the 2021 green tea volume was 2.094 million mt – 32 percent of the world’s tea output – which demonstrates that black teas, ie, fully oxidised leaf continue to dominate. It’s important to also take into account the additional tea categories that have been introduced to the West by China since the beginning of the millennium. These include dark teas, oolong teas, which are gaining ground in the Western markets’ premium segment, and white teas, although it’s a small share. According to YU Lu, vice president of the China Chamber of Commerce for Food and Life stock (CFNA) located in Beijing, these specifically Chinese tea categories represent approximately 24 percent of the output in China’s domestic tea market, which translates into a volume of around 735,000 mt.

When looking at the various dividing lines, the distinction between black orthodox leaf tea and black CTC tea also offers some market insight, with CTC going mostly to the mainstream tea bag segment, whilst orthodox teas are generally more pricy and more premium. ITC data shows that the black tea output from the main producers in 2021 amounted to a global volume of 3.56 million mt, shared out at 60 percent for CTC and 40 percent for orthodox leaf.

Volume wise, current market data show that black teas represent about 55 percent, green teas about 32 percent and other teas (ie, oolong and dark teas and white teas) about 13 percent of the world tea production today.

Promoting tea globally remains challenging

A significant step forward towards a global promotion of tea drinking was the official introduction of the annual International Tea Day (ITD), which takes place every year on 21 May. This coordinated highlighting of the cup on the same day all over the world, at a time when most of the spring teas have been harvested, was approved by the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) in 2019.

Tea was celebrated together with coffee and cocoa during the United Nations (UN) Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) International Food Day on 15 October 2021, during a special session which highlighted the important contribution of the three crops as revenue providing to millions of smallholders, and this was indeed a first.

However, contrary to coffee and cocoa, which both have their product’s markets monitoring enshrined in an International Agreement for more than 50 years, tea has not yet reached that level of attention. The global tea market monitoring is entrusted to the Intergovernmental Group (IGG) Tea, which was established in 1969 within the Rome, Italy-based UN FAO. Dr Jean Luc Mastaki has been handling the IGG Tea since 2017, following the retirement of FAO official Kaison Chang.

The 24^th FAO IGG Tea virtual plenary session, which took place in February 2022, concluded that in order to capitalise on emerging market opportunities and pro-actively address upcoming trends, the IGG Tea is invited to “take note of the emerging trends in tea consumption in both new and traditional markets, discuss the possible scope for renewed international coordination of generic promotion for tea, and provide guidance regarding actions to respond to the emerging market trends, including the role of digital solutions.”

The FAO IGG Tea also initiated the first International Scientific Symposium on Tea & Human Health. The first ever event of that kind, which was held in the United States in 2000, did generate significant awareness about the many reported health benefits of tea. Over the years more and more research has been published and the 6^th International Scientific Symposium on Tea and Human Health was run as a virtual session, monitored by the Tea Association of the USA, in April 2022, attracting significant and renewed attention to the cup.

Tea may well be at a crossroad, with a need for more global communication about the wealth of benefits which the cups bring along to all consumer groups, whatever their age and their homelands. The many ways to consume tea offers great flexibility, the agricultural side provides income to millions of small holders and alleviates rural poverty, whilst the cups themselves provide hydration, psycho active stimulation, mood improvement and antioxidant effects to consumers all over the globe. During the height of the pandemic and through 2022, most of these important global events were run as virtual sessions, which took away a big share of their impact. One may hope that follow up in life will soon be possible and allow for more lime light to shine on the cup.

• Barbara Dufrêne is the former Secretary General of the European Tea Committee and editor of La Nouvelle du Thé. She may be reached at: b-dufrêne@orange.fr.

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Tea and coffee have been competing for throat-share in the West for many decades and consumption patterns continue to shift. Markets are becoming more global, new generations opt for wider choices, diversification has become key to growth and social and economic sustainability are today an intrinsic part of the list of goals. There is a desire for specialty teas to move towards a more unified platform, but the path to do so is a challenging one.

In the late 1980s, tea was the leading caffeinated hot brew in the United Kingdom, the Netherlands and Russia, whilst coffee was the king of the morning in North America and the rest of Europe. The multinational brands were dominating with mostly blended black teas in tea bags, and the premium segment comprised the spring leaves harvested from a few world-famous origin areas, located mainly in India and Sri Lanka. When China came back to the market in 1982, with Deng Xiao Ping restoring private ownership and encouraging foreign trade, the market was shaken up with a wealth of new cups arriving in the West, all unknown and unheard of. These countless varieties of specialty teas, coming in different colours and many different shapes and grades generated a keen need for learning more about them to assess these cups and to understand their high prices.

Importing, trading, retailing & brewing premium cups

In the wake of China’s opening access to its ‘ten thousand teas’, the big issues were how to provide product knowledge for the suppliers/retailers on one side and for the consumers on the other side, how to ensure accurate information and how to manage authenticity concerning origin, process, botanical cultivar, and harvesting period etc.

Green teas were the first to puzzle the Western palates, followed by white teas, oolong and puer teas. All these cups were new and exciting with striking leaves to brew them. After generations of tea buyers, tasters and blenders having been trained in-house by the traditional tea majors and family companies the new specialty teas brought along a fully new challenge.

The big question of how and where to find complete and accurate product knowledge became a key issue in the late 1990s, with many operators doing their own sourcing travels to origin to learn about the product on the spot. Several highly renowned companies were founded during this period by passionate tea explorers and tea travellers, such as the French companies Mariage Frères, Palais des Thés, Jardins de Gaïa, and Cha Yuan; the Canadian company Camellia Sinensis; the British Fine Tea Merchants and Postcard Tea; and the Americans Seven Cups and Rishi Tea, to name a few. These well-known and fully acknowledged tea pioneers have paved the way for many more new operators, attracted by the novelty of this fascinating, exotic and high added value niche market.

Education, teaching and training

To profitably market the new cups, the urgent need for education occurred rapidly and was picked up in various forms according to national market patterns. It was in North America that the first nationwide initiatives were taken to provide accurate knowledge about these new specialty teas to the tea professionals. The Tea Association of the USA founded the Specialty Tea Institute (STI) in 2001, and the Tea & Herbal Association of Canada (THAC) launched the Tea Sommelier Certification Programme in 2006. These educational structures, vetted by the two countries’ domestic tea industry, provide fully endorsed curricula, thus ensuring that the tea professionals will acquire in depth knowledge about specialty teas.

Image: Newby Teas

Peter Goggi, president of the Tea Association of the USA, underlined the importance of the statutory tea associations, which can offer nationwide legitimation and endorsement, which is a significant competitive advantage compared to other self-proclaimed tea schools and tea training educators. STI offers certified education, which leads to graduation, giving tea professionals the status of accreditation by the Tea Association of the USA. THAC’s Tea Sommelier Certification Programme applies similar rules and offers a wide range of educational courses with certifying exams, open to tea professionals and to tea lovers.

In Europe, the tea-sourcing pioneers and specialty tea company founders acquired their tea knowledge on the ground, a learning which is not easy to access by many, hence the need to provide teaching and training to all the other tea professionals at home to prevent mis-and dis-information, and to introduce all the new cups in an attractive and fully competent way. With the national Tea Industry Federations being run by the tea majors, there was no interest to invest in specialty tea education in the early times. Therefore, the private sector followed up and the first tea school in Europe was launched by Palais des Thés in Paris, France in 1999, with the teaching open to all, however without any exams, certification or graduation. Since that time most of the French specialty tea companies have launched their own tea training lectures and tasting sessions and many tea drinkers flock there happily, to learn more about these delicious cups.

With the same objective to introduce tea training and tea education for tea professionals and to open the tea drinkers’ minds to the new and enlarged universe of the ten thousand cups (from China), renowned tea pioneer and tea author, Jane Pettigrew, launched the UK Tea Academy in London (UKTA) in 2016. In Italy, the tea expert, Gabriella Lombardi established the ProTea Academy in Milan in 2016, offering tea education and tea training to tea professionals as well as to tea lovers.

There are company tea courses and private tea schools also in Spain, Denmark, Czech Republic, and Poland, etc., all with the aim to allow the customers to learn more about the many fine cups on the market to foster consumption.

It is important to note that very sophisticated training and education is also sometimes made available by origin country operators, which have established their tea houses in the West, such as Thés de Chine in Paris, and others who come from Taiwan, Japan and Korea, where tea is not only a fragrant cup but intimately linked to ancient cultural traditions.

With the desire to share their own professional experience with tea lovers to foster an in-depth knowledge of these fine cups, many valuable tea books have been authored by well-known tea pioneers since the early years of the new millennium, a further useful tool for spreading tea knowledge in Europe and North America.

Exploring new cups from the Far East

In the early years of the new millennium, black tea producers in Darjeeling, Malawi, Rwanda, and Sri Lanka, etc., became so fascinated with China’s silver needles that they launched their own white teas to display their abilities and skills. White teas were arriving from many new origins at that time, always beautiful, whilst not always brewing to expectation. Responding to a need for ‘good order with basic processing steps properly defined,’ an ISO-tea technical report, ISO/TR 12591 White Tea Definitions, was published in December 2013, after several years of discussions, which defined and enshrined terms and definitions for these beautiful teas. Finally, the white tea-frenzy calmed down as production costs were huge for the untraditional white teas, and today, most of them come from China as before.

Spring harvest from Sikkim Temi Tea

With highly proactive promotion by Japanese major Ito En, matcha was introduced to North America over the last few years, and it has created a true craze for premium green tea powder in the USA and is now gradually gaining ground in Europe too. As some producers in Korea and China were keen to join the matcha-boom, there arose again a need for having some agreed basic rules for the sake of ‘good order’, hence the ISO sub-committee on tea convened a Matcha Tea working group in 2018 and a technical report, which lays down basic rules and requirements, published as ISO/TR 21380:2022 Matcha Tea in April 2022.

There is no end to this yet, since one also finds today puer tea made in Malawi and Laos and elsewhere and Oolong tea from India and Indonesia, therefore two new working groups have been organised by ISO-Tea to continue drafting basic definitions and terms to complete the framework of ISO standards for the new tea categories.

The international level

In 2013, Ramaz Chanturiya, CEO of the Russia Tea & Coffee Federation launched the Tea Masters Cup with the focus on promoting specialty teas with the end consumers through highly educated and knowledgeable tea professionals in the Russian tea market. Highly successful domestically, he then introduced this benchmarking scheme on an international level, embedded in a high-profile event, Tea Masters Cup International (TMCI), in 2015. Up to the Covid disruption, there have been four TMCI competitions in Turkey, Korea, China and Vietnam.

In 2015, the first Teas of the World contest was run by AVPA, a not-for-profit agency, based in Paris, France, with the purpose of promoting terroir food products, such as edible oils, coffee, chocolate and tea. The concept targets the promotion of fine teas, submitted by the producing companies at origin, for a quality assessment carried out by professional tea tasters and tea experts, and awarded with medals for commercial purpose, attracting the media, Western retailers and customers. The fifth contest took place in July 2022 and the number of samples submitted has increased hugely since inception.

Premium sencha cups from different cultivars

In 2018, the European Specialty Tea Association (ESTA), was launched in the UK, with the purpose to create a European-wide platform for the promotion of specialty teas. The plan follows the lines of the Specialty Coffee Association of Europe (SCAE), founded in 1998, and unified within SCA in 2017, with a structure of national chapters and accredited tea Certifiers who train, educate and assess.

Outlook for the post-Covid times

With the unending stress generated by the sanitary crisis, tea is becoming the sought-after soothing, relaxing and restoring cup, attracting many new consumers. However, the premium and specialty teas continue to require educated retailers and tea professionals, hence the need to maintain the ongoing efforts for more training, authentic and qualified storytelling and improved competence for brewing practices.

Despite many attempts, there is not yet any fully agreed definition nor an approved set of criteria required for a tea to belong to the category specialty tea, although origin, cultivar, harvesting period, and manufacturing process are most likely to figure somewhere on the list. The market share of specialty teas varies greatly throughout the Western consumer countries, which impacts the degree of consumer awareness and the growth potential. It may well take some more years of training, educating and promoting before reaching comparable market patterns to build a federating platform on European level with the support of the national federations for tea and herbal infusions.

• Barbara Dufrêne is the former Secretary General of the European Tea Committee and editor of La Nouvelle du Thé. She may be reached at: b-dufrêne@orange.fr.

The post The complicated task of categorising ‘specialty’ tea appeared first on Tea & Coffee Trade Journal.

All tea leaves are green on the bush, except for rare purple and white leaf varieties. It is the tea-manufacturing process that divides the made teas into the two main families: the black teas, which are fully oxidised and the green teas that preserve their green colour through a heat shock, which halts further enzymatic development, be it with dry heat through panning/frying or by steaming.

These two different ways of processing are neatly divided out between the Asia-based tea-producing countries, where green tea is the ancestral cup, and the former colonial tea growing areas, where black teas are commercially produced for export to the European consumer markets. The cup profiles are contrasting and completely different, which can make it truly uncomfortable to switch from black tea to green tea, unless there are powerful incentives such as highly favourable health benefit announcements or the expectation of discovering highly attractive new flavours and tastes.

There are many traditional local varieties of green teas in China, the world’s biggest green tea exporter with over 300,000 metric tonnes in 2019; followed by Vietnam with green tea exports around 96,000mt, and Japan around 76,000mt. Japanese green teas are usually made with the steaming process, which makes the leaves needle shaped and the premium quality mainly goes to export. Most green teas are marketed as loose leaf and are rarely blended and the CTC process does not apply to them.

The catechin buzz

When green teas started to tip toe into the European markets, it was under the premises of tea and health research, carefully monitored by Unilever for the start, out of their Tea Research Center in Colworth, England, with its carefully tendered tea bushes, well shielded against Britain’s cold winters.

Green tea from Paris, France-based premium tea purveyor, Palais des Thes. Image: Barbara Dufrene

In these early times, mainstream green tea, mostly gunpowder from China, was introduced with messages that made it a remedy cup against aging, strokes and cardiovascular disease, promoting the antioxidant power of the green tea polyphenols, i.e., the various catechins. Doctors were contacted and informed about the benefits of green tea and many then advised their senior patients to drink green tea instead of coffee. This very rapidly rang alarm bells for the coffee companies and generated an important campaign of funding scientific academic research, with the purpose to underlining the health effects of both cups, by elaborating research on the physiological effects of the tea and coffee polyphenols. These compounds all belong to the same big family of natural plant chemicals, but they have many different names and structures etc.

With green tea on the verge of becoming a medicinal cup, as many swallowed the astringent drink for better health, but without any pleasure, new input was required. At that time the European labelling provisions were drafted and hence ISO methods were being developed to allow the measuring of the various cup’s catechin contents, to attract more consumer interest and foster consumption. However, the finalised EU health claim regulations did not include any such health benefit claims for tea, neither green nor black, considering that the science was not sufficiently sustained, which was a blow to mainstream green teas. A new strategy was the switch to flavoured green teas, blending them with attractive plants, such as mint and lemon, to appeal to new target groups, namely younger consumers who had no previous black tea experience and were keen to discover these easy to brew, flavourful, untraditional novelty cups.

Exotic premium terroir green teas

Following the promotion of green tea as a healthy beverage to attract European tea drinkers was the introduction of premium green teas. First came China’s famous Longjing tea, with its lovely flat pan-fried leaf and nutty buttery flavour notes. Originating from Zhejiang’s beautiful and famous West Lake area, the high yield cultivar Longjing number 43 had been fostered in the heart of China’s Tea Science and Research capital, Hangzhou, with its mythical origin story carefully spinning all over the Western tea drinking world.

Matcha tea at a tea salon in Paris. Image: Barbara Dufrene

The West Lake Longjing green tea became the first tea ever to be awarded an EU Protected Geographical Indication in 2011, followed by the same distinction given to the black teas from India’s 78 Darjeeling Tea Estates. This carefully groomed process has made green teas more conspicuous by giving them status, which attracted growing consumer interest for this elegant, tasty, expensive, and healthy premium origin cup.

It was also clear in the early years of the new millennium that consumers needed to be informed and educated, to better understand and fully appreciate the new green origin teas. Tea schools and tea training institutions sprang up, with the founding of the US Specialty Tea Institute for training the American tea professionals in 2002 and the Ecoledu Thédu Palais de Théin 1999 in Paris, France, for educating clients and consumers, as the pioneers and fore runners.

London-based Jing Tea Baojing Gold green tea. Image: Jing Tea

These developments have paved the way, not only for more premium green teas from China, but also for the premium green teas from the neighbouring producing countries, namely Japan and South Korea, with their different taste profiles, attractive stories and hefty prices. They are all riding on the wave of a recently emerged demand, issued by a target group of well educated, widely travelled and affluent tea lovers who are happy to invest in fine green teas and their brewing accessories for their own pleasure and joyful relaxation.

The new premium green teas 

China’s fine green teas are mostly rather robust and hence easy to brew, with freshly boiled water poured over the leaves, extracting the flavours through several infusions, with a great preference for the early spring picks. These cups offer a rich range of pleasant, sweet, buttery and chestnut/nutty fragrance notes, which are familiar to the Western palates. The leaf is always beautiful, after unfolding with re-hydration.

Various green teas and their resulting cups. Image: Barbara Dufrene

Following in the footsteps of China, the Japanese Ministry of Agriculture has launched an intense promotion of Japanese premium teas, which also offer longstanding cultural traditions but have a completely different taste profile and more complex brewing requirements. Attracting a growing fringe of knowledgeable consumers who are keen to explore novelty cups, these generally small volume and expensive premium cups also build on the Zen attitude and the high theanine content of the shade grown harvests, which are made into matcha, gyokuro and some premium sencha.

South Korea has picked up the thread and has also started to promote fine green teas in Europe, originating mainly from the volcanic island of Jeju, south of the peninsula. Most of these highly fragrant cups are rare, precious and expensive, but sought after for moments of relaxing and delight, individually or shared with company who also care and fully appreciate such treasured leaves.

Increased availability and further potential

Good mainstream green teas are available on all supermarket shelves, either as genuine leaf or in tea bags, there is also a wide choice of flavoured green teas provided by multinational brands like Lipton, Tetley’s and Twining’s. The premium operators and the small retailers all carry green teas from prestigious origins in their portfolios. There is a growing focus on Japanese green teas, which are being heavily promoted in France, Germany, Italy and in the UK.

Image: Clipper Tea

Statistics from the International Tea Committee’s 2021 Annual Statistics Bulletin show however, that the import share of green tea varies widely, with 3.6 per cent in the UK, 7 per cent in Ireland and 10.4 per cent in Russia – the three big markets where black tea remains the king of the cups – 12 per cent in the Netherlands,14 per cent in Poland, 24 per cent in Germany, 26 per cent in Italy and 57 per cent in France. Adding up the total tea imports of these eight markets, the overall share of green tea imports amount to 12.6 per cent, compared to 8.5 per cent in 2007, which is a moderate growth for a 17-year period.

Supply is mainly sourced from China, followed by Indonesia and Vietnam, with small volumes of premium teas imported from Japan and Korea. China’s premium green teas are hardly available for export, all gobbled up by the affluent domestic consumers who have even recently paid USD $730 for a 500g pre-Qingming Westlake Longjing lot, as reported by the China Tea Marketing Association in Beijing.

There remains a huge potential for expanding green tea consumption further in Europe with the younger generations, who have no previous black tea-drinking experience and are keen on Eastern traditions such as the Zen-attitude and mindfulness, whilst the light colour and taste of the cup continues to attract health-oriented and more senior tea lovers. The pandemic has also increased the focus on stress reduction, healthy hydration and well-being, which is expected to increase the demand for green cups.

• Barbara Dufrêne is the former Secretary General of the European Tea Committee and editor of La Nouvelle du Thé. She may be reached at: b-dufrêne@orange.fr.

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