There is a myriad of differences between the food and drink preferences of different countries and ethnicities. Even countries in the same continent or home to similar ethnicities and religions can have entirely different cuisines. But there’s one thing in particular that everyone loves and all nationalities agree on: tea!
The flavors infused within it may vary from country to country, but the essence of the drink, and its mental and physical health effects are undeniably enjoyable.
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Why are most tea companies non-eco-friendly?
But like with anything that’s popular nowadays, it has inevitably become a multi-million dollar industry, and with that, came several negative aspects.
Some of the big names in the tea industry might use manufacturing methods that are inorganic or unfriendly for the environment. Massive tea farms rely on pesticides and chemicals that harm the soil and surrounding ecosystem, as well as use unregulated biofuel like wood to dry the harvested tea. There have also been several concerns regarding the health effects of materials used to make tea bags.
These are some of the rising concerns from climate activist & human rights groups around the world:
– You need a vast amout of land in order to grow tea.
– The work of harvesting tea demands an awful lot. As most tea countries also are third world countries (China, India, Sri Lanka, etc.), the working conditions are very often very poor.
– There have been several reports on forests being chopped down to make room for tea production. In the Northern part of India, tigers have lost their natural habitats due to this industry alone.
– Tea production companies do also pollute the environment surrounding the tea plants. For example, the fresh water close to Usumbara in Tanzania has been heavily damaged. That creates huge problems for the people living in these areas.
I would almost compare the tea industry with the avocado industry. Most people are going shopping without understanding what happens behind the scenes. Many people were extremely surprised when I wrote an article about how avocado farming causes huge environmental and social problems in South America.
Tea companies that do have a genuine eco-friendly profile
We’ve compiled for you a list of organically grown, environmentally friendly tea brands that will satisfy your cravings while preventing harm.
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Vahdam Darjeeling Organic Tea
Vahdam Tea is mostly famous for its tasty and unique Indian blends. Manually harvested and manufactured in India and directly imported from there, this brand has several certifications for its organic and clean manufacturing methods.
You can view their certifications as well as their diverse and unique collection of blends on their Amazon store.
I do very often look at reviews when I recommend companies that I haven’t tried myself. Despite knowing that most of the reviews on Amazon are fake, it’s still a quite good threshold to know if a product holds a certain standard. Teabox Organic Tea got AMAZING product reviews.
Arbor Tea
This tea brand is well known for always taking pride in its organic production and packaging methods. They use sustainable and environmentally friendly farming techniques to produce some of the best loose leaf blends out there.
You can find more information about Arbor Tea’s farming methods, certifications, and flavors on their website. They do offer a wide range of teas. Not only can you choose between different tea types, but also tea from all different parts of the world. That is illustrated in this picture:
My experience with Arbor Tea
This IS a tea brand that I am quite familiar with. They are probably the tea company with the strongest green branding, which is why I ordered a couple of products from them. I have to say that their white tea wasn’t exactly my cup of….tea.
But their black tea, which contains caffeine, was something I really enjoyed.
Starwest Botanicals
Starwest Botanicals ranks high on the list of environmentally friendly tea brands. The tea is farmed and manufactured in the US, which eliminates dangerous food miles. Please note that Starwest also offer other products. Despite having a lot of tea in their shop, they offer more than 3000 environmentally friendly consumer products.
I did ship one of their tea bags to a friend in the US. He is not much of a chatty guy. So after trying the tea, he simply said: “Meeh…it was alright. Just like any other tea brand.“
Additionally, Starwest is known for using renewable energy to power their manufacturing processes as well as recyclable materials.
To my knowledge, they do not offer international shipping.
Teatulia
Sometimes you feel like having a cup of tea, but not the hot type. Teatulia offers a wide range of flavors but with a cool twist: they offer regular tea as well as powder mixes for ice tea.
Teatulia has several certifications, and they use portions of their revenues to fund sustainable farming programs in the tea country of origin, Bangladesh.
To be frank, I don’t know too much about this company apart from what I have read. Haven’t tasted their tea, haven’t bought their tea and….I just have to assume that what they write on their website is true. 🙂
The Republic of Tea
This tea brand has been in the market for over 25 years. The Republic of Tea has several certifications for its sustainable and eco friendly farming and manufacturing methods, and they don’t disappoint with their range of flavors and tea types. Not only that, but the Republic of Tea is a partner with many non profit organizations dedicated to good causes like medical research, among others.
Many people will say that The Republic of Tea is like Jackie Chan of kung fu movies. Or what Ashton Kutcher is to prank TV. You get the point.
Most of their teas are to be found in the price range of 10 USD – 20 USD. You can visit their website and browse their products by clicking here.
Honest Tea
Well, the name says it all. Certified for their eco friendly farming and manufacturing methods, this tea brand is well known for its ice tea, as well as its proved clean harvest methods which use no pesticides or unnatural chemicals. Honest Tea also is known for guaranteeing that farmers and workers responsible for production are working in optimum conditions with fair pay.
Teadaw
No tea list is ever complete without mentioning green tea. Known worldwide for its incredible health benefits, it’s a huge plus to find brands that bring you all the fresh green goodness of green tea on an ethical plate.
Teadaw is certified for its clean and sustainable manufacturing process as well as for its 100% ethical farming and harvesting strategies, in addition to its hassle free, environmentally friendly direct shipping.
There are so many similar brands in the market that employ ethical and eco friendly methods in producing their tasty blends, and you can browse on Amazon or at your local supermarket for your favorite blend. But before purchasing your next batch, make sure to look for certifications like USDA, Rainforest Alliance, and of course, helpful labels like eco-friendly, organic, and recyclable. You can also spare a few minutes for a quick google search to make sure you’re buying from a trusted manufacturer. Happy drinking!
FAQ:
Is it worth drinking eco-friendly & organic tea?
I’m not gonna lie. I don’t taste the difference.
Despite drinking between 5 and 10 cups of tea every day, I’m not able to taste the difference. I’m gonna be honest here.
On the flip side, drinking eco-friendly tea makes me FEEL much better. That’s something I do every time I buy or consume eco-friendly products. The thought of me saving the world is worth spending a couple of extra dollars for every tea pack that I buy online.
Can you compost tea bags? Here’s the answer.
Can you buy organic tea in bulk?
Absolutely. There are loads of options on Amazon that allow you to buy organic tea in bulk .
My favorites are these:
Can organic tea be used for weight loss purposes?
Well, I’ve seen a lot of people claim this online.
And the people who claim that are the same people selling tea. So I’m not really surprised that they also want to go into the “weight loss market” with their products. It’s so easy to say that food and drinks that do not contain too much sugar/fat helps you to downsize.
It’s not entirely false. If you do keep away from fat and sugar, you’re doing alright. But it’s not the (organic) tea that helps you slim down. It’s the fact that you stay away from unhealthy food.
This doctor seems to agree with me:
Wrapping things up
If you’re like me, you are willing to pay a little more to support businesses that produce and sell eco-friendly products.
I know that organic tea isn’t going to save the world. But it does indeed make a difference to all the tea manufacturers that try to make healthy and eco-friendly products. I support that. And I think you should do that as well.
Lastly, it also sends a clear signal to the large international tea brands that turning their business into something eco-friendly is a good idea. The power of the consumer is so extremely strong that we need to stay together in order to force large corporations to think green.
What do you think?
Do you have any product recommendations for me?
If so: I’m more than happy to hear from you in the comment section below.
