With your help we can have an impact and start a positive movement that benefits everyone from farmers to you, from our communities to the planet.
We want to help to preserve the livelihood of tea farmers in Japan as well as a very important part of Japan's and the world's cultural heritage. We want to create a brighter future for a great community of people who have been passionate about tea for centuries by sharing it with you and many others around the world.
We don't pretend we nailed it or have all the answers, but here is what we have been able to achieve so far and where we want to go next.
Current context
Tea is deeply embedded in Japanese culture, history, and tradition.
However, today 95% of the domestic production is consumed locally with a large part being sold to major beverage companies producing cheap ready to drink tea bottles. This business model has created a downward spiral in tea production triggering the below issues :
1. Decreasing quality : The overall tea production quality has been falling over the last decades to meet the requirements of major corporations aiming at producing cheap tea products.
2. Impact on the environment : In order to produce larger quantity at a always lower price farmers and producers have little but no choice to use chemical pesticide and fertilizer in their production methods.
3. Vocation crisis: The hardship to keep up with producing always cheaper tea has hurt the livelihood of many farmers and trigger a lack of interest for the next generation to take over. The average age of tea producers in Japan is over 55 years old.
4. Decreasing culture relevance in today's culture
We believe whole-heartedly that organic farming is the way to go. It is a no-brainer that the commonly heavy use of pesticides and artificial fertilisers (a lengthy topic for another time), are harmful to humans, animals and plants alike. The natural ecosystem has its own delicate and intelligent balance, and we believe that it needs to be restored.
All our farmers are dedicated to farming methods in tune with nature, also using traditional knowledge, not using chemical pesticides and fertilisers.
We partner directly with farmers or boutique tea merchants.
The reasons are quite simple :
1. It connects small farms and collective to new clients outside of Japan.
2. It offers higher prices to farmers and tea merchants. It can directly support their livelihood and future development.
3. It supports organic agriculture or transition hand in hand with them
4. It connects you directly to the freshest and highest quality tea from the farm to your cup.
5. It allows us to reduce number of shipments and therefore our carbon footprint. From them to us, from us directly to you.
6. It gives farmers visibility on our platform for new business opportunities for themselves and a recognition for their incredible work.
3. Our packaging
Tea leaves and powder are extremely delicate, they can easily be altered by oxygen, light, moisture or smell.
Our first priority is to deliver to you the freshest tea.
In order to do that the common knowledge is to use plastic or aluminium based packaging that eventually just end up in landfills damaging the environment.
To us it just doesn't make any sense to offer organically grown product if it is to hurt the planet with plastic garbage.
That is why it was absolutely out of the question to pack your tea in nothing else than a fully sustainable solution.
A tea grown with respect of nature and sent to you in a box that can be returned to earth.
Inner Pouch:
1. Each component is individually certified compostable.
2. Vegan, non-GMO, and Plastic-free.
3. Lightweight and durable - reducing overall carbon footprint.
4. A reclosable zipper ensures that your product stays fresh.
5. These films meet composting standards for industrial composting environments. Safe for Home Composting.
Standards and Certifications: ASTM D6400, EN13432. The zipper is additionally certified compostable by TUV.
Outer Box:
- Made of 100% recycled, recyclable and compostable cardboard.
- Printed with botanical ink
Labels
- FSC certified paper
- Acid Free Paper
- Printed with soy-based ink
We believe on giving the Japanese tea culture a platform to share its beauty and protect its heritage.
We also aim at extracting the essence of it to make it relevant in today's global lifestyle.
We believe most of its learnings and meanings are extremely relevant today if deconstructed in a modern context. Tea culture doesn't belong in museums but as a part of our lifestyle.