The first Tetley packs to carry the Rainforest Alliance Certified™ seal on shelves now!
The first packs of Tetley with tea from Rainforest Alliance CertifiedTM farms have hit the shelves in stores in the UK today. This marks a major milestone on the journey to becoming a more sustainable brand for Tetley, the world's second largest tea brand. Packs carrying the Rainforest Alliance Certified™ seal will also start to appear in Malta/Spain/Portugal/Canada over the next couple of months.
Tetley’s decision to purchase all of the tea for its branded teabag and loose tea products from Rainforest Alliance Certified™ farms is a significant commitment that will have a wide-reaching and positive impact across Tetley’s supply chain and the global tea industry, given that 75 million cups of Tetley are drunk around the world every day.
All Tetley branded black, green and red (Rooibos) tea, including flavoured and decaffeinated varieties, will come from Rainforest Alliance Certified™ farms by 2016
The launch of the first packs containing Rainforest Alliance CertifiedTM tea has been supported by the ‘Farmers First Hand’ initiative, facilitated by Facebook. It allows consumers to communicate directly with tea producing communities who are working towards gaining Rainforest Alliance Certified™ status for their farms, and the page now has over 7,000 fans.
Peter Unsworth, CEO of Tata Global Beverages, which counts Tetley amongst its brands, said:
"Our mission to make the world a better place through life-enhancing sustainable hydration is taking us on a journey to change what we do and how we do it.
“We need products and supply chains that can be successful today but also fit for a future which will be very different - due to challenges such as a growing population, climate change, water scarcity, and health and wealth inequality.
“Working with farms to enable them to become Rainforest Alliance Certified TM is good for our business and good for the tea estates and tea pickers we work with. On the estates, farmers have learned, for example, how to reduce their impact on and adapt to climate change and water scarcity. This makes livelihoods there more secure whilst also meaning less risk to our supplies of tea.
“In our key markets where tea drinkers increasingly want to know where and how their favourite brew has been produced, Tetley’s brand reputation is also enhanced. We are already seeing evidence of this on the Farmers First Hand Facebook page where some consumers are 'coming back' to Tetley.”
Responding to today’s launch, Tensie Whelan, president of the Rainforest Alliance, commented:
"With consumer demand for ethically-sourced products increasing all the time, we have seen the entire tea industry take a massive leap towards sustainability. As packs of Tetley with the Rainforest Alliance Certified™ seal hit supermarket shelves this week, we are delighted that Tetley is part of transforming the way tea is consumed in the UK. Over 160 million cups of tea are consumed in the UK every day, with sixty million of these coming from Rainforest Alliance Certified™ farms. It is very exciting that Tetley is going to be instrumental in growing this number to around 100 million and ensuring that both the environment and the lives of tea farmers are being protected and improved."
For further information please contact
For Tetley:
For Rainforest Alliance:
For Tetley:
Alana Sciortino on 020 8338 4006, 07585903797 or Alana.sciortino@tetley.co.uk
Christina Cullen on 07985 440 238 or christina@themessagehub.com
NOTES TO EDITORS
1. You can visit the facebook page at http://www.facebook.com/Farmersfirsthand
2. Tetley remain active members of the Ethical Tea Partnership (ETP), whose existing programme and collaboration with the Rainforest Alliance will help facilitate the launch of Tetley certified products.
About Tetley
Tetley is a growing global tea brand with a presence in 70 countries around the world. It is the market leader in the UK and Canada and in total 75 million cups of Tetley tea a day are drunk worldwide. For more information please visit www.tetley.com
About Tata Global Beverages
Tata Global Beverages comprises a number of major beverage brands including Tetley, Tata Tea, Good Earth, Eight O’Clock Coffee and Himalayan. The group employs around 3000 employees worldwide and has its corporate headquarters in the UK. The Tetley Group was purchased by Tata Tea in 2000. For more information on the Tata Global Beverages brands please visit www.tataconsumer.com
About Rainforest Alliance
The Rainforest Alliance is an internationally-focused, not-for-profit organisation that was established in the USA in 1987. The organisation works to conserve biodiversity and ensure sustainable livelihoods by transforming land-use practices, business practices and consumer behaviour. To date, the Rainforest Alliance has helped conserve the water, soil and biodiversity of more than 50 million hectares of forest and farmland in 68 countries and improved the lives of more than 2 million workers and their families.
The Rainforest Alliance certification programme means that farms have to meet the environmental, social and economic standards of the Sustainable Agriculture Network (SAN). The SAN standards cover ecosystem conservation, worker rights and safety, wildlife protection, water and soil conservation, agrochemical reduction, decent housing, and legal wages and contracts for workers.
For more information please visit www.rainforest-alliance.org