So sip and give back! These companies make it easy.
Ajiri Tea
www.ajiritea.com
Specialty: Black Teas
Mission: Economic aid in Kenya; HIV/AIDS Treatment
The Scoop: After graduating from Bowdoin College in May 2008, Sara Holby headed to Kisii, in western Kenya, to volunteer for a health-related non-governmental organization (NGO). Sara came to love the community: the people, its bustling streets and markets, and the rural areas outside of town where many HIV/AIDS patients live. The NGO provided free medication and food to the patients, but in January 2009 the organization lost its funding and this support abruptly stopped. People needed sustainable economic opportunities to empower themselves. Sara and her mother Ann decided to launch Ajiri Tea. Sara’s sister Kate traveled to Kenya to scout out the feasibility of a tea company that would directly benefit the local women, farmers, and orphans. They chose the Nyansiongo Tea Factory to supply the tea. The company’s vision and mission is rooted in the opinions, passions, and skills of people living in the Kisii community. In addition to employing local women, there was the need to pay school fees for the growing number of orphans.
Arbor Teas
Specialty: Organic Teas
Mission: Environment; Sustainability; Compostable Packaging
The Scoop: Arbor Teas’ mission is to find the world’s most fantastic organic teas and deliver them as sustainably as possible. From their exceptional collection of organic and Fair Trade Certified® teas to their Carbonfree® business practices to their backyard compostable packaging, their passion is steeped in a desire to do worldly good and to remain organic to a tea.
Bhakti Chai
bhaktichai.com
Specialty: Fair Trade Certified Black Tea
Mission: Support for Global Organizations for Women and Girls
Click here to read an interview with Bhakti Chai’s Founder and CEO Book Eddy.
Blue Lotus Chai
bluelotuschai.com
Specialty: Authentic Spiced Traditional Masala Chai
Mission: 10% of net profits to charitable organizations
The Scoop: Blue Lotus Chai was determined to create a product that would satisfy the tastes of the most ardent chai lover, be easy and quick to prepare, and a clean, pure product. They wanted to make it economically available to everyone and versatile enough to meet a limitless variety of dietary needs. Blue Lotus Chai Company’s commitment to serving the greater good has inspired them to donate 10% of net profits to charitable organizations, including Doctors Without Borders, Greenhill Humane Society, Kiva, Shantipuri Friends Foundation, Self-Realization Fellowship and the Yogoda Satsanga Society of India (YSS).
Charbrew
www.charbrew.com
Specialty: Fresh Full Tasting Teas
Mission: Environmental Concerns
The Scoop: Charbrew is a English business based in the quaint village of Thelwall, Cheshire. Adam Soliman created Charbrew in 2009 at the tender age of 21. After discovering tea plantations in the Far East and Asia as well as researching fruit and herbal infusions in the European market, Adam realized that tea companies were not pushing the boundaries when it came to making that special brew.
Charbrew believes in minimizing his company’s impact on the world as well as promoting sustainability, taking steps to reduce the impact on the planet. Their innovative pyramid teabag design is 100% biodegradable. Their pyramids allow for the infusion of the whole leaves, herbs, fruits, and spices that can be found in their blends. Charbrew works closely with accredited suppliers who hold environmental concerns as well as sustainability at the top of their agenda. Their tea manufacturing takes place in the only carbon neutral and water neutral tea factory in the world.
DAVIDsTEA
www.davidstea.com
Specialty: Special Collections; Fair Trade Teas
Mission: Fair Trade Practices
The Scoop: David Segal was a 28-year-old tea loving entrepreneur. His cousin Herschel Segal was a Canadian retail pioneer. What did they have in common? A vision: great tea, a friendly environment and a colorful, modern store. With David’s energy and enthusiasm and Herschel’s know-how, it was the perfect balance of youth and experience. Their first store opened in 2008 on Queen Street in Toronto, Canada. Before long, first time customers became regulars, neighbors became friends and the store became a community fixture. The company boasts an entire line of Fair Trade USA-certified collection of teas.
David Rio Chai
www.davidrio.com
Specialty: Premium Chai Products
Mission: Animal Rights
Click here to read an interview with founders of David Rio.
Global Teas
www.globalteas.org
Specialty: Organic teas
Mission: Poverty and Human Rights Causes
The Scoop: Global Teas combines a passion for good tea with a passion for helping change people’s lives. When she was 15 years old, owner and founder Dezerai Seitzer participated in her first overseas volunteer trip. Raised in a small, affluent town, she made a commitment to help people on whatever level she could. Thus, Global Teas was born to support the organizations with whom she had volunteered; $1 of every Global Teas retail pouch is donated to one of three non-profit organizations and $3 from every case of individually wrapped single-service teas (for use by restaurants, special events, and cafes) is also donated.
Seitzer traveled overseas to volunteer and chose 3 non-profit recipients with whom she worked first-hand. These 3 organizations are freeing children from sexual slavery, fighting for the removal of UXOs in Laos, and sending medical supplies and setting up medical clinics all over the world.
Harney & Sons
www.harney.com
Specialty: Fine Crafted Tea Blends
Mission: Environmental Awareness: 1% For the Planet
The Scoop: Harney & Sons Tea Company sells fine teas at a price that makes tea an everyday luxury. Their tea is sipped around the world in homes, hotels, restaurants, cafes and on cruise ships. The process of shipping tea from the world’s tea gardens to Harney & Sons’ production facility for blending, bagging and packing, then on to the world’s teacups, impacts an increasingly fragile environment.
Joining 1% for The Planet meant that Harney & Sons could directly donate 1% of its total sales to the environmental organizations of their choice. They also pay annual membership dues to 1% For The Planet to help this organization defray overhead costs. Visit www.onepercentfortheplanet.org for more information.
Honest Tea
www.honesttea.com
Specialty: Bottled Teas; Great-tasting, healthy organic beverages
Mission: Sustainability
Click here to read an interview Honest Tea’s “Tea-EO” Seth Goldman to find out their sustainability-to-success secret.
K’Tizo
www.ktizotea.com
Specialty: Teas and Blends for Cultural Connections
Mission: International Human Rights
Click here to read an interview with K’Tizo’s founder, Judy Duncan.
Mahamosa
www.mahamosa.com
Specialty: Gourmet Teas, Spices and Herbs
Mission: Being in the World
The Scoop: Being in the WorldTM is Mahamosa’s charitable brand and an expression of their business model and philosophy. They chose the phrase “Being in the World” because it describes not only their individual being but also their inseparable situation, connection and continuity with the world. Their causes range from fighting hunger and poverty, supporting education, promoting clean water and environments and supporting animals and natural habitats. Their business is an experiment in socially and environmentally responsible capitalism. They believe consumers inform their purchasing decisions not only by cost but also a true concern for the world around them.
Under the Being in the WorldTM brand, Mahamosa directly contributes to charitable causes and organizes community service events, programs and projects. Under the brand, they also sell clothing and provide, prepare and serve food and beverages, such as teas, herbs and spices, among other products and services.
Numi Tea
www.numitea.com
Specialty: Orgnically Grown Teas
Mission: The Numi Foundation
Click here to read an interview with Ahmed Rahim, the Co-Founder, CEO, and Chief Alchemist and his sister Reem, Numi’s Chief Brand Officer.
Red Rose Tea
www.redrosetea.com
Specialty: High-Quality Tea Varieties
Mission: Environmental Habitat Preservation
The Scoop: Red Rose Tea has partnered with the International Fund for Animal Welfare (IFAW) to help support the goal of preserving the environmental habitats in countries where Red Rose Tea has sourced its teas for generations. In addition to a monetary donation, Red Rose Tea is supporting IFAW by bringing awareness to the organization and its mission with special-edition carton artwork on Red Rose Original Tea, Red Rose Decaffeinated Tea and Red Rose Specialty Selections tea boxes, each of which includes an insert directing people to donate to IFAW.
Founded in 1969, IFAW saves individual animals, animal populations and habitats throughout the world, including countries such as Kenya, Malawi, Sri Lanka and India, where Red Rose Tea has sourced its tea leaves from carefully selected tea estates for more than 100 years. Preservation of these particular tea-growing regions is essential to make sure that Red Rose can continue to deliver the superior blend of tea that their fans have come to love. “Red Rose Tea is very excited to work together with IFAW to help ensure a better future for the environmental habitats in the countries from which we source our tea,” said Debo Mukherjee, Chief Executive Officer of Redco Foods, Inc. “It’s important to remember where our tea comes from and to ensure that the tea we purchase is from a reputable source and is purchased in a socially responsible manner.”
Steep City Teas
www.steepcityteas.com
Specialty: Teas with Health Benefits
Mission: Urban Harmony in a Cup
The Scoop: Steep City Teas was established in October 2012 by Gabriela and David Palmerola. The couple found their passion for tea in Mexico City while visiting for work. Gabriela convinced David, an avid coffee drinker, to visit popular tea bars and sample “good” tea.
Steep City Teas is proud to be a local Miami business. Their goal is to be actively involved in the community by participating in local events, festivals, local markets and any other local gathering. They believe it is important to give back to the community and are committed to donating a portion of all revenues to City Year Miami. They are an education focused non-profit organization that unites young people of all backgrounds for a year of full-time service to keep students in school and on track to graduation.
And Steep City keeps its environmental footprint in focus. As an environmentally conscious business they try to minimize their impact on the world by buying used boxes when available and recycling newspapers from offices for shipping supplies.
Strand Tea Company
www.strandtea.com
Specialty: Quality Tea at Affordable Prices
Mission: Fair Labor Practices, Sustainable Agriculture, and Environmentally Sound Business Practices
The Scoop: Strand Tea was formed in 1997 as a values-oriented company. Over time they have developed relationships within the tea industry from tea grower to tea drinker. They travel to tea gardens, and work with people throughout the world’s tea industry. They have seen the lives of people who produce tea, and understand more about what is involved in farming, harvesting and packing tea. Tea production is often the only means of livelihood for individuals, families and communities in rural mountain areas. Whenever possible Strand buys from family businesses, small estates and organic tea producers.
The Tea Spot
theteaspot.com
Specialty: Signature Blends
Mission: Cancer Awareness
The Scoop: The Tea Spot donates 10% of profits to cancer awareness, research, and wellness programs. They do this to actively support the cause that fuels their passion: maintaining the on-going wellness of cancer survivors and facilitating healthy habits to decrease cancer risks. The Tea Spot’s passion is fueled by their founder and CEO, a cancer survivor initially drawn to the health benefits of premium tea during her recovery. The company is inspired by medical research suggesting that tea provides numerous health benefits, from helping prevent disease to stress management and weight loss. To date, The Tea Spot has made donations through dozens of health and community initiatives including: National Race to End Women’s Cancer, Rocky Mountain Cancer Center, Living Journey’s Summit Hike, Casting for Recovery, Ovarian Cancer Awareness of Kentucky, Junior League of Denver, A Woman’s Work, Cancer Climber Association, HospiceCare of Boulder and Broomfield Counties, and Colorado Ovarian Cancer Alliance.
“Loose leaf tea became an integral part of my own recovery and continues to be a key component of my daily health regimen,” says Maria Uspenski, CEO & ovarian cancer survivor.
Teatulia
www.teatulia.com
Specialty: Exquisite, Organic Teas
Mission: Wages/Environmental Awareness
The Scoop: Teatulia organic tea comes directly to customers from their organic tea garden. There is no middleman, no long-term warehouse storage and no waiting around to be put into just the right blend as defined by a third-party blender. Started in 2000 to give back to the community, they sought an enterprise that would give the most people a living wage while protecting/strengthening the environment. Not content with the social programs already in place, the Teatulia Cooperative has established revolutionary education, health and cattle-lending programs for the people working in the garden and surrounding areas. All sales of Teatulia Organic Teas contribute to this mission, helping to better the lives of Bangladeshi men, women and children while rebuilding the local ecosystem.
Tealet
tealet.com
Specialty: Curated Teas Direct from the Grower
Mission: Supporting Tea Growers
The Scoop: Tealet has grown a passion for advocating for the growers who have worked for generations upon generations to perfect the art of tea making. The US market is becoming increasingly interested in tea as mainstream retailers are adding more specialty tea options to their menus, including loose leaf tea. Tealet provides farmers an opportunity to post their stories and teas which are then presented to the US market. In Tealet’s model, the farmer receives 3 times more value than selling to the traditional distribution system because they can receive $50 per pound on average on Tealet. Advancements in technology and connectivity on the internet have made it possible for tea farmers to integrate their businesses vertically and sell their tea direct to the market. This means they are able to significantly improve their situation in the market and improve the livelihood of their communities.
TeaLicious
www.tealiciousllc.com
Specialty: Teas to Promote Health
Mission: Supporting Children with Autism
The Scoop: Snowbasin Adaptive Sports Education Foundation (SASEF), located in Northern Utah, is a non-profit organization that provides support for adaptive snowsports programs held at Snowbasin. Their programs offer winter recreational opportunities for individuals with disabilities to share with their families and friends in a world-class alpine environment. It is through generous donations that we are able to provide the support this program and clients so richly deserve.
Tea Tibet
www.teatibet.org
Specialty: Teas from Tibet
Mission: Non-Profit; Proceeds Benefit Tibet
The Scoop: All profits are sent to educational projects and orphanages in Tibet. The idea for the 100% non-profit tea company, Tea Tibet, was conceived as a means to benefit existing charitable organizations helping to educate Tibetan students. Kombucha Wonder Drink founder, Stephen Lee, was approached through a mutual friend to spearhead management of this project. Initial benefiting organizations are Tibetan Children’s Village and Tibetan Home of Hope.
Zhi Tea
www.zhitea.com
Specialty: Premium Organic Tea
Mission: Sustainable Food Distribution
The Scoop: Zhi Tea are die-hard tea lovers with a love and deep respect for traditional farming, Fair Trade practices, and high-quality necessities. It was their desire to create the world’s most gorgeous tea website and jaw dropping tea blends.
Zhi Tea is a homegrown Austin, TX, company. All processing of the tea is done in Austin, handcrafted in small batches. The company is active in the local community, participating in many foodie local sustainable events throughout the year and even won a Local Heroes Award through the Edible Communities for 2009. They actively support local non-profits, such as Urban Roots and the Sustainable Food Center in Austin. Grassroots has always been their approach and they survive by word-of-mouth promotion.
