We are often asked - quite rightly - about our ethical sourcing policy and whether or not our tea is "Fairtrade".
Given the vast range of ingredients that go into our products, this is not a question to which we can provide a snappy PR answer, but like most things we do, something to which we are very happy to give a detailed response.
Our tea does not come with the “Fairtrade” mark but we take a strong line with regard to the ethics of the "proper" tea trade; Fairtrade producer organisations receive the Fairtrade Minimum Price which is origin-specific - currently $2.40/kg in Sri Lanka, $2.00-$2.20/kg in India and $1.70-$1.80/kg in Kenya - and a Fairtrade Premium of $0.50/kg of made tea, paid to the producer organisations.
We believe these levels are far from fair. Due to the premium nature of the tea we use in our products, we, and those above us in our supply chain, already pay well over this so-called “Fairtrade" price for our teas – and so we should for carefully farmed, often handpicked, produce.
At the moment, we work with a large number of suppliers who produce the tea, fruit and herbs in our expanding product range. Some are organic, some are members of the Ethical Tea Partnership and the rest are screened with thorough documenting of their processes and are audited where necessary. As such, we can confidently state that all of our ingredients are from trusted suppliers and are fully traceable.
If you have any concerns regarding any of our products or ingredients please don't hesitate to get in touch.