Tea Biz

Quality-Led Firmness Masks Uneven Auction Liquidity | Tea markets closed ISO Week 35 with headline support intact, but quality mattered more than volume. Buyers remained disciplined, closely tying bids to immediate blending needs.

Colombo was buoyant overall, led by low-grown leafy teas and selected better high- and mid-grown descriptions. Mombasa improved at the headline level, though incomplete clearance revealed uneven demand. North India drew good participation, but plainer Assam teas, orthodox descriptions, and dusts met resistance; South India was fair during a holiday-affected week. Indonesia saw slow demand, with selective firmness for scarce West Java lines.

In...

Behind the Cup: Why Quality Tea Needs a Better Business Model | Social and environmental conditions behind tea production remain far less scrutinized than those of coffee or cocoa.

In this Tea Biz Spotlight, I speak with Ecological Economist Pierre William Johnson, author of the French-language Thé: l’envers de la tasse — Tea: Behind the Cup. Pierre’s central argument is not that the tea trade should be made to feel guilty. Rather, it is that quality, economic viability, social justice, and environmental resilience are interconnected — and that a higher-priced tea is not necessarily more equitable.

His resea...

Nepal Tea Enters Recovery Mode | India Puts Tea Under Satellite Surveillance | Vale Bets on US-Grown Matcha | Podlink signup: https://pod.link/1549975153

Nepal Tea Enters Recovery Mode | India Puts Tea Under Satellite Surveillance | Vale Bets on US-Grown Matcha

NEWSMAKER – Author and Ecological Economist Pierre William Johnson

PLUS |Behind the Cup: Why Quality Tea Needs a Better Business Model

Social and environmental conditions behind tea production remain far less scrutinized than those for coffee or cocoa.

In this Tea Biz Spotlight, Ecological Economist Pierre William Johnson, author of the French-language Thé: l’envers de la tasse — Tea: Behind the Cup — examines the structures that shape how tea is grown, processed, traded, and valued. We discuss w...

Quality Holds as Regional Tea Prices Diverge | Tea markets closed ISO Week 32 with mixed headline prices but a consistent trading pattern: buyers remained active for immediate coverage and continued to reserve their strongest bids for clean, well-made teas.| In Colombo, prices averaged $3.58 per kilo, up 3 cents versus the reconstructed Week 31 benchmark. | In North India, prices averaged $2.37 per kilo, down 4 cents versus the last available official average for Week 31. In Mombasa, prices averaged $2.14 per kilo, up 2 cents versus Sale 29. In Indonesia, prices averaged $2.39 per kilo, down 2 cents versus the prior indicative Week 31 benchmark. | Podlink signup: https://pod.link/1549975153

Taste the World of Tea in Seattle | The 16th edition of the Northwest Tea Fest returns to Seattle Center September 26–27 with a sold-out exhibitor hall and a deliberately broad view of the tea world. Visitors can taste teas from major origins, speak directly with the people who source and sell them, attend presentations and workshops, and explore teaware and tea culture under one roof.

Virginia Wright, Executive Director of the Northwest Tea Festival, and Festival Coordinator and Puget Sound Tea Education Association Board President Andrew Goodman are in the SPOTLIGHT to explain what makes this year’s gath...

Typhoon Deluges South China’s Tea Lands | Floods Halt Production at 30 Assam Tea Gardens | Argentina Moves Its GI-Protected Tea Origin to Market

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Typhoon Deluges South China’s Tea Lands | Floods Halt Production at 30 Assam Tea Gardens | Argentina Moves Its GI-Protected Tea Origin to Market

NEWSMAKERS | Festival Coordinator Andrew Goodman and Puget Sound Tea Education Association President Virginia Wright

PLUS | A World of Tea Comes to Seattle | Festival organizers Andrew Goodman and Virginia Wright preview the 2026 Northwest Tea Festival, September 26–27 at Seattle Center, in Seattle, Wash. They explain how a sold-out exhibitor hall brings together teas from China, Taiwan, Japan, India, Africa, Korea and Vietnam; how curious newcomers can sample without feeling overwhelmed; and how pres...

In Colombo, prices averaged $3.55 per kilogram this week, up 10 cents versus the previous week, Sale 24. In North India, prices averaged $2.62 per kilogram, up 8 cents from the last available official average (Week 25). In Mombasa, prices averaged $2.33 per kilogram, up 1 cent versus the prior indicative benchmark, Sale 25. | In Indonesia, prices averaged $2.41 per kilogram, flat versus the prior indicative benchmark, Week 26. |

Across the four markets, quality segmentation remains the dominant pricing mechanism. Exporters are resisting lower bids where currency stability and embedded costs support price floors, but buyers are not building speculative positions. Freight, insurance, packaging, and finance remain important...

When Tea Becomes More Than a Product: Building Ritual, Community, and Trust Without Losing Authenticity

Tea is often described in terms of origin, cultivar, elevation, and craft—but another dimension is harder to quantify and increasingly central to how people engage with tea today: presence.

Across the specialty market, we are seeing a shift. Not just toward better tea, but toward more intentional ways of experiencing it - spaces designed for slowing down, for attention, for connection. The language of ritual and mindfulness is everywhere. But that raises a critical question for the industry: what is...

Assam Enters Commercial Matcha Production | Caffeine Labels Could Work in Tea’s Favor | Floods Threaten the World’s Largest Jasmine Harvest | Podlink signup: https://pod.link/1549975153

Assam Enters Commercial Matcha Production | Caffeine Labels Could Work in Tea’s Favor | Floods Threaten the World’s Largest Jasmine Harvest | Newsmaker - Luong “Flowing River” Shen, Co-founder of Drishti House

PLUS | When Tea Becomes More Than a Product: Building Ritual, Community, and Trust Without Losing Authenticity

Tea is often described in terms of origin, cultivar, elevation, and craft—but another dimension is harder to quantify and increasingly central to how people engage with tea today: presence.

Across the specialty market, we are seeing a shift. Not just toward better tea, but toward more inten...

Tea markets closed Week 25 with a firmer but still highly selective tone. Demand was present across the major auctions, but buyers remained disciplined, concentrating on clean, useful teas rather than bidding broadly across the catalog.| In Colombo, prices averaged $3.95/kg this week, ↓ -$0.05/kg vs the previous week, Sale 22. In North India, prices averaged $2.59/kg this week, ↑ +$0.06/kg vs last available official average, Week 23 ending 6 June. In Mombasa, prices averaged $2.22/kg this week, ↑ +$0.08/kg vs the previous week, Week 24. In Indonesia, prices averaged $2.41/kg this week, → 0.00/kg vs prior indicative benchmark. | The structural drivers remain consistent: quality differentiation, exporter resistan...

Vietnam has long been a volume player in tea—but that's changing.

As demand shifts toward origin, clarity, and craft, a new generation is redefining what Vietnamese tea can be—and how it's valued. | Today's guest is Tri Nguyen, CEO of Tea Cusp.

BIO: Tree Tri represents a new generation of Vietnamese tea makers—one rooted in heritage but intent on redefining how the world understands Vietnam as an origin. | A second-generation producer, he has spent decades in tea alongside his family, building vertically integrated operations that include organic farming and certified production systems.His missio...

Heatwave Warning: El Niño and Tea’s Climate Stress Test | Nepal Tea Factories Reopen, But Export Risk Remains | Availability Is Not Deliverability | Podlink signup: https://pod.link/1549975153

Heatwave Warning: El Niño and Tea’s Climate Stress Test | Nepal Tea Factories Reopen, But Export Risk Remains | Availability Is Not Deliverability

NEWSMAKER – Tri Nguyen, CEO of Tea Cusp

PLUS | Vietnam: Changing Perceptions | Vietnam has long been a major force in the global tea trade, but rarely the center of the conversation. As demand grows for specialty tea, matcha, and origin-driven products, Vietnamese producers are investing in quality, processing, and identity. Today's guest is Tri Nguyen, CEO of Tea Cusp. His mission is simple but ambitious: change global perceptions of Vietnamese tea w...

Quality Holds, Averages Ease | Tea markets closed ISO Week 21 with functional demand but a wider separation between quality teas and secondary descriptions. The market is not distressed, but it is more selective.

Colombo saw fair demand, though the total sales average eased from the previous week. North India remained active, especially for improved teas and dusts, but Sale 21 averages moved lower from Sales 20. Mombasa stayed orderly against the latest available official benchmark, while Indonesia showed the clearest demand tone, with Van Rees reporting good demand for the week. | In Colombo, prices averaged $3.62/kg this week, ↓ -$0.20/kg vs...

Can Anonymous Worker Feedback Become a Market Signal in Tea? | Glassmarks founder Guy Chambers believes the tea industry is approaching a structural turning point. For decades, ethical sourcing systems relied heavily on audits, certifications, and private compliance reports. But consumers increasingly want transparency, while producers who invest in better working conditions often receive little recognition or commercial advantage.

Glassmarks attempts to address that gap by creating a continuous, anonymous worker feedback system focused on three indicators: Safety, Fairness, and Voice. Workers complete a one-minute survey in their own language. Results are aggregated into public-facing signals designed to...

Middle East Conflict Dramatically Lowers Sri Lanka Tea Exports | Assam Unrest Reveals Deeper Industry Strains | Turkish Tea Finds a Bigger Export Market | Podlink signup: https://pod.link/1549975153

Middle East Conflict Dramatically Lowers Sri Lanka Tea Exports | Assam Unrest Reveals Deeper Industry Strains | Turkish Tea Finds a Bigger Export Market - Guy Chambers, Founder, Executive Chairman, Glassmarks

PLUS | The Power of Feedback | What if anonymous worker feedback became reliable and pervasive? Could feedback be powerful enough to reshape tea sourcing?

For decades, ethical tea relied on audits and certifications. But what if the people closest to production — the workers themselves — became the source of continuous improvement? Guy Chambers, former CEO at Finlays and founder of Glassmarks, designed the not-for-profit platform around three simple idea...

In Sri Lanka, stronger competition persisted for cleaner, high-grown, well-manufactured teas, while secondary descriptions continued to encounter resistance. | In Colombo, prices averaged $3.24/kg this week, ↑ +$0.03/kg vs the previous week (Week 18), supported by continued supply tightness and stronger competition for select high-grown and well-manufactured leafy teas.

In North India, prices averaged $1.93/kg this week, ↑ by $0.04/kg vs the last reported average (Week 18), reflecting steady buying support for stronger liquoring North Indian teas and improved demand from blenders and exporters.

In Mombasa, prices averaged $2.23/kg, unchanged from the previous week (Sale 18 benchmark), supported by broadly stable buye...

Regenerative agriculture has become one of the tea industry’s most discussed concepts, but definitions often remain vague. Producers, traders, and brand owners generally agree that healthier soils and more resilient ecosystems matter. The harder question is what regenerative farming actually looks like in practice on a working tea farm.

For Michael D. Ham, the answer begins with restraint. On Jeju Island in South Korea, Wild Orchard Tea grows tea without irrigation, synthetic fertilizers, or intensive intervention. The objective is not simply sustainability, but long-term biological resilience.

In this SPOTLIGHT conversation, Ham discusses soil microbiology, bi...

Fertilizer Shock Threatens Tea Quality, Yields, and Costs | International Tea Day Events Expand Across Global Markets | India Pushes Ahead with Contested Tea Auction Mandate | Podlink signup: https://pod.link/1549975153

Fertilizer Shock Threatens Tea Quality, Yields, and Costs | International Tea Day Events Expand Across Global Markets | India Pushes Ahead with Contested Tea Auction Mandate

NEWSMAKER – Michael D. Ham, CEO of Wild Orchard Tea

PLUS | Regenerative Farming Begins by Doing Less

Regenerative agriculture has become one of the tea industry’s most discussed concepts, but definitions often remain vague. Producers, traders, and brand owners generally agree that healthier soils and more resilient ecosystems matter. The harder question is what regenerative farming actually looks like in practice on a working tea farm.

Tea markets closed WEEK 17 with prices edging firmer across the major auction centers, but the underlying signal remains quality, not volume. | Across Colombo, North India, Mombasa, and Indonesia, buyers continued to participate, but with discipline. Competition focused on clean, well-manufactured teas needed for immediate blending and export commitments. Secondary grades remained more difficult to secure, requiring price adjustments or weaker bidding. | Pricing reflects that structure clearly. In Colombo, prices averaged $3.24 per kilo, up three cents week-on-week. North India averaged $1.92, up four cents on the last available official benchmark. Mombasa came in at $2.23, up two cents on the prior sale...

On Earth Day, it’s easy to talk about sustainability in broad terms—but much harder to connect those ideas to what’s actually happening on the ground. | For tea producers, climate pressure is no longer abstract. It’s showing up in yield, cost, and long-term viability. | What we’re exploring today is a different approach—one that attempts to measure soil health, biodiversity, and resilience, and link those directly to economic outcomes.

BIO: Annabel Kalmar is the founder of Tea Rebellion and a trustee of RegenTea, a UK-based foundation advancing regenerative agriculture in tea. She works with origin...

Middle East Instability Threatens Blending Hubs | A Refund Rush is Underway in US Trade | China’s US Ambassador Praises Tea Harmony | Podlink signup: https://pod.link/1549975153

Middle East Instability Threatens Blending Hubs | A Refund Rush is Underway in US Trade | China’s US Ambassador Praises Tea Harmony

NEWSMAKER – Tea Rebellion Founder Annabel Kalmer, and a RegenTea Trustee

PLUS | Regenerative Tea Moves from Sustainability Claims to Farm-Level Economics | Tea Rebellion Founder Annabel Kalmar explains how RegenTea is testing whether soil health can translate into measurable return on investment for tea producers.

It’s a shift from certification to economics—and one that could redefine how value is created at origin. | Podlink signup: https://pod.link/1549975153

Tea markets closed ISO Week 15 with conditions still stable—but with a subtle shift in what is driving that stability.

Across the major auction centers—Colombo, North India, Mombasa, and Indonesia—buyer activity remained steady, but highly selective. Demand continues to focus on teas needed for immediate blending and export commitments, with well-made teas attracting consistent competition. | At the same time, secondary teas continue to face a more difficult environment. Clearance often requires price adjustment, reinforcing the widening gap between premium and standard quality across the catalog.| Podlink signup: https://pod.link/1549975153

Specialty tea has long defined quality through craftsmanship, origin, and terroir. These pillars have shaped how producers grow tea, how buyers evaluate it, and how consumers understand value in the cup. But a new layer is emerging—one that shifts attention beneath the surface. As environmental pressures intensify across global agriculture, regenerative farming is entering the tea conversation. Its focus on soil health, biodiversity, and ecosystem resilience introduces a deeper question: not just where tea is grown, but how the land itself is managed over time. In this episode, Bernadine Tay, President of the European SpecialityTea Association, explores whether re...

War Costs Mount | China Opens Zero-Tariff Access—But Compliance Decides Who Benefits | US Tariff Refunds Begin April 20: What Tea Importers Need to Do Now | Podlink signup: https://pod.link/1549975153

War Costs Mount | China Opens Zero-Tariff Access—But Compliance Decides Who Benefits | US Tariff Refunds Begin April 20: What Tea Importers Need to Do Now |

NEWSMAKER – Bernadine Tay, President of the European Speciality Tea Association |

PLUS | Specialty tea has long defined quality through craftsmanship, origin, and terroir. These pillars have shaped how producers grow tea, how buyers evaluate it, and how consumers understand value in the cup. But a new layer is emerging—one that shifts attention beneath the surface. As environmental pressures intensify across global agriculture, regenerative farming is entering the tea conversation. Its focus on soi...

Tea markets closed ISO Week 13 with prices still largely influenced by quality, buyer selectivity, and disciplined exporter behavior rather than any broad increase in demand. Reports from the current week suggest a generally stable but uneven market across all major auction centers, with strength mainly in well-produced teas and growing pressure on secondary descriptions.

Colombo (Sri Lanka) Prices averaged $3.21/kg this week, ↓ -$0.02/kg from the previous week, reflecting fair demand but softer performance in parts of the premium and Ex-Estate catalogs amid increased offerings.

North India (Kolkata / Siliguri / Guwahati) Prices averaged $1.88/kg, ↑ +$0.09/kg, supported by s...

World Tea Expo was once the center of gravity for the specialty tea trade in North America—a place where retailers, importers, and producers aligned around a shared vision of quality, origin, and education.

In 2026, that center has shifted.

The show floor is busier. The audience is broader. Matcha and Japanese green tea suppliers were highly visible thanks to Government-backed export programs. The Tea Board-sponsored pavilions from past years, representing Sri Lanka, India, and Africa, were not. Lipton Tea made its first appearance at the show with foodservice offerings. Innovation is increasingly shaped by trends in...

One Year After Tariffs: The Tea Industry’s Costly Lesson | ONTHEFLOOR at World Tea Expo l Regulatory Shock: EU Tightens MRL Enforcement

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One Year After Tariffs: The Tea Industry’s Costly Lesson | ONTHEFLOOR at World Tea Expo l Regulatory Shock: EU Tightens MRL Enforcement

NEWSMAKER – Host Dan Bolton

PLUS | World Tea Expo - A Show Transformed | This week, we’re on the floor at World Tea Expo in Las Vegas—where the show has quietly transformed.

No longer a standalone tea event, it’s now embedded inside a broader bar and restaurant ecosystem. Traffic is up. Matcha is everywhere. But for specialty tea, the question is sharper than ever:

Is th...

Tea markets closed ISO Week 11 with price discovery still driven more by quality and execution than by broad demand expansion. 

In Colombo, the latest broker-published weekly comparison available during the week showed sales averaged $3.68 per kilo for the 4 March sale, down from $3.85 per kilo for the prior 25 February sale. So Colombo softened on that measure, even as better-made teas continued to attract support. In India, the weekly benchmark picture was incomplete. Disruptions in market demand are apparent due to widespread conflict in the Middle East and the closure of the Strait of Hormuz. Tea Board India published a...

Few specialty retailers have expanded as successfully—or as thoughtfully—as The Spice & Tea Exchange https://www.spiceandtea.com/. Founded during the depths of the 2008 financial crisis, the brand has grown from a single shop in St. Augustine, Florida, into a nationwide franchise with more than 90 locations. | At the heart of that growth is CEO and co-founder Amy Freeman, whose approach combines entrepreneurial discipline with a strong belief in hospitality, storytelling, and sensory retail. Instead of standardizing stores into uniform outlets, Freeman has created a model that promotes local experimentation, community engagement, and hands-on exploration of spices, loose-leaf teas, and cu...

Hormuz Shockwaves Reshape Global Tea Trade and Freight Risk | India-U.S. Trade Pact Could Reopen U.S. Market Access for Indian Tea | DMCC Reveals New Details on 600-Metre Uptown Dubai Megatall Tower | Podlink signup: https://pod.link/1549975153

Hormuz Shockwaves Reshape Global Tea Trade and Freight Risk | India-U.S. Trade Pact Could Reopen U.S. Market Access for Indian Tea | DMCC Reveals New Details on 600-Metre Uptown Dubai Megatall Tower

NEWSMAKER – Amy Freeman, CEO and Co-Founder Spice & Tea Exchange

PLUS | Tea Discovery Drives Retail Growth | Few specialty retailers have expanded as successfully—or as thoughtfully—as The Spice & Tea Exchange. Founded during the depths of the 2008 financial crisis, the brand has grown from a single shop in St. Augustine, Florida, into a nationwide franchise with more than 90 locations. At the heart...