Traidcraft Everyday Fair Trade Teabags (6x80 bags)

A mellow gold tea with a lively, refreshing flavour. Designed to brew well in a pot or cup. Carries the FAIRTRADE Mark. We are rated as one of the most ethical companies in this Ethical Consumer buyers guide to fair trade tea »

Tea is important - why?

With over 20 million people in the developing world reliant on the tea industry, it is a vital focus in our/the fight against poverty.

• In India, tea is the 2nd largest employer. Over 4million people depend on the industry to survive
• 10% of Kenya's population (or 3.8 million) is employed in the tea sector

Within the tea trade, smallholder tea farmers and workers benefit the least.

• Many have extremely hard lives, which are physically demanding, with low levels of pay
• Tea estate workers can be powerless to change their circumstances as they can be totally dependent on the estates for everything e.g. wages, healthcare, schooling and sanitation leaving them with little control over their lives
• Smallholder tea growers often have no choice but to sell their tea through factories or middlemen with little bargaining power to earn a better price
• Tea prices fluctuate leaving growers vulnerable. Tea prices have experienced a sharp increase in the past 12 months due to bad weather conditions and political instability in the main exporting countries, like Kenya. However this must be seen against the backdrop of long-term low prices, e.g. throughout the past 10 years tea auction prices in Kenya have remained at least 50% below today's high prices