Tea Biz

Dan Bolton
  • 5.0 (4)
  • Business News
  • Updated Weekly

The Voice of Tea Lands | Tea Journey Magazine, founded in 2015, and the Tea Biz Blog | Podcast are favorites of tea enthusiasts and professionals worldwide. Content is authentic, timely, and exclusive, a collaborative effort that enlists 40 voices skilled in 12 languages to tell the story of tea. Coverage spans tea discovery and preparation to tea tourism, lifestyles, health and wellness, meditation, culinary tea with recipes, and terroir. Our business coverage offers insights for commercial producers supported by rich market data and scientifically backed research. Transparency is rooted in authentic storytelling, featuring nuanced articles about the places and people who passionately live a life in tea. As a niche publication, Tea Journey relies on reader contributions for most of its income. Please consider donating to support the writers and staff who bring you our unique tea content from around the globe. We appreciate your support. In 2025, we teamed up with our good friends at OverSubscribe, a platform that lets our fans make real financial investments in our future. By contributing as little as $25 to Tea Journey, you’re not just supporting our publication—you’re joining a lively global community and earning a return on your investment. | https://teajourney.oversub.me/

  1. 1d ago

    Tea Price Report | Week 37 | Ending 11 September, 2026

    Quality Widens the Price Gap | Tea markets ended ISO Week 37 with prices increasingly determined by quality rather than broad market direction. Across the major auction centers, buyers remained active but selective. Colombo recorded fair general demand, but stronger teas separated from weaker Western and Orthodox descriptions. North India remained under pressure relative to earlier-season highs, even as production constraints provided some underlying support. Mombasa showed one of the clearest quality signals, with better Kenyan manufacture attracting substantially stronger competition. Indonesia remained broadly stable, although limited public weekly data make it the least transparent of the four benchmarks. | Podlink signup: https://pod.link/1549975153 Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brands Privacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

    Tea Price Report | Week 37 | Ending 11 September, 2026

  2. 1d ago

    Spotlight | How Recognition Adds Value to Tea

    Tea producers seeking higher returns are often advised to add value through improved processing, certification, packaging, or branding. Independent recognition of the finished tea’s quality is another part of that conversation. AVPA, the Paris-based organization behind the international Teas of the World competition, evaluates entries through blind sensory assessment. For producers moving beyond bulk sales, that recognition can help convey what makes a particular tea distinctive. In this SPOTLIGHT, we explore how producers can connect quality to the market, what French consumers value, and where recognition fits alongside the commercial work of building a brand. Our guest today is Ksenia Hleap, Chief Operating Officer of AVPA — Agence pour la Valorization des Produits Agricoles, the Paris-based organization that conducts international competitions recognizing the gastronomic quality of agricultural products. Ksenia joined AVPA in October 2017 as Director of Communications and Business Development and was named Chief Operating Officer in July 2026. She is closely involved in AVPA’s international Teas of the World competition, which welcomes producers from established and emerging tea origins and evaluates entries through blind sensory assessment. She earned a master's degree in business development from UPEC Université Paris. Her work at AVPA focuses on producer recognition, product quality, and market development—particularly helping agricultural producers communicate their products' identity, quality, and added value. | Podlink sign-up: https://pod.link/1549975153 Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brands Privacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

    Spotlight | How Recognition Adds Value to Tea

  3. 1d ago

    Tea News Recap | Africa Pushes Value Over Volume | Europe Pays More for Better Tea | ISO Advances Tea Standards

    Africa Pushes Value Over Volume | Europe Pays More for Better Tea | ISO Advances Tea Standards | Podlink signup: https://pod.link/1549975153 Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brands Privacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

    Tea News Recap | Africa Pushes Value Over Volume | Europe Pays More for Better Tea | ISO Advances Tea Standards

  4. 1d ago

    Ep 245 | Africa Adds Value | Europe Buys Better Tea | ISO Sets Standards

    Africa Pushes Value Over Volume | Europe Pays More for Better Tea | ISO Advances Tea Standards NEWSMAKER – Ksenia Hleap, Chief Operating Officer of AVPA in Paris PLUS | Certification can tell a buyer how a tea was produced. But does it taste good? Ksenia Hleap explains how independent sensory recognition can help producers distinguish their teas in the market. Later in the program, we discuss what the French palate rewards, why recognition matters for emerging origins, and how a tea can move from an anonymous commodity to a product with an identity. | Podlink signup: https://pod.link/1549975153 Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brands Privacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

    Ep 245 | Africa Adds Value | Europe Buys Better Tea | ISO Sets Standards

  5. Sep 4

    Tea Price Report | Week 35 | Ending 28 August 2026

    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 Colombo, prices averaged $3.70/kg this week, up $0.07/kg vs the previous sale’s reconstructed $3.63/kg benchmark. In North India, prices averaged $2.33/kg this week, down $0.06/kg vs the last available official benchmark of $2.39/kg for the week ending 15 August. In Mombasa, prices averaged $2.21/kg this week, up $0.03/kg vs Sale 33’s $2.18/kg benchmark. In Indonesia, prices averaged $1.12/kg this week, up $0.01/kg vs the prior indicative Week 34 benchmark of $1.11/kg. | Podlink sign-up: https://pod.link/1549975153 Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brands Privacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

    Tea Price Report | Week 35 | Ending 28 August 2026

  6. Sep 4

    Spotlight | Behind the Cup

    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 research examines the structures that determine how tea is grown, processed, traded, and valued. We discuss why quality premiums do not necessarily reach workers or smallholders; what happens inside the processing “black box” between green leaf and finished tea; how plantation systems might evolve without abandoning workers; why monoculture creates both business and environmental risks; and what tea companies should change first to build stronger relationships with producers. BIO: Pierre William Johnson specializes in ecological economics and the sustainable development of agricultural and artisanal value chains. His research focuses on tea-producing regions in Asia and East Africa. His latest book examines labor relations, trade structures, producer organization, environmental pressures, and value distribution across the tea sector. | Podlink sign-up: https://pod.link/1549975153 Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brands Privacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

    Spotlight | Behind the Cup

  7. Sep 4

    Tea News Recap | Nepal Recovers | India Maps Tea | US Grown Matcha

    Nepal Tea Enters Recovery Mode | India Puts Tea Under Satellite Surveillance | Vale Bets on US-Grown Matcha | Podlink signup: https://pod.link/1549975153 Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brands Privacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

    Tea News Recap | Nepal Recovers | India Maps Tea | US Grown Matcha

  8. Sep 4

    Ep 245 | Nepal Tea Recovers | India Maps Tea by Satellite | US-Grown Matcha

    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 why paying more for quality does not necessarily translate into higher income for workers or smallholders; how colonial-era plantation systems continue to shape wages and working conditions; why monoculture poses both economic and environmental risks; and whether producer organization, agroforestry, stronger quality incentives, and shorter value chains can lead to a fairer distribution of value. | Podlink signup: https://pod.link/1549975153 Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brands Privacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

    Ep 245 | Nepal Tea Recovers | India Maps Tea by Satellite | US-Grown Matcha
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Ratings & Reviews

5
out of 5
4 Ratings

About

The Voice of Tea Lands | Tea Journey Magazine, founded in 2015, and the Tea Biz Blog | Podcast are favorites of tea enthusiasts and professionals worldwide. Content is authentic, timely, and exclusive, a collaborative effort that enlists 40 voices skilled in 12 languages to tell the story of tea. Coverage spans tea discovery and preparation to tea tourism, lifestyles, health and wellness, meditation, culinary tea with recipes, and terroir. Our business coverage offers insights for commercial producers supported by rich market data and scientifically backed research. Transparency is rooted in authentic storytelling, featuring nuanced articles about the places and people who passionately live a life in tea. As a niche publication, Tea Journey relies on reader contributions for most of its income. Please consider donating to support the writers and staff who bring you our unique tea content from around the globe. We appreciate your support. In 2025, we teamed up with our good friends at OverSubscribe, a platform that lets our fans make real financial investments in our future. By contributing as little as $25 to Tea Journey, you’re not just supporting our publication—you’re joining a lively global community and earning a return on your investment. | https://teajourney.oversub.me/

Information

  • Creator
    Dan Bolton
  • Years Active
    2021 - 2026
  • Episodes
    494
  • Rating
    Clean
  • Copyright
    © 2022 All rights reserved.
  • Show Website
    Tea Biz