Organic tea

[Tead Off]

I just read that only 1.6 % of tea grown in Japan is "organic". Now I have not heard of massive death in Japan from drinking all the other tea not grown "organic". In fact Japanese have the longest live expectancy in the world and that with all this "inorganic" tea they drink.

Most Japanese don't give a hoot about tea or know much about it.

That's a novum. In 2007, 48,500 ha were planted to tea in Japan producing 94,100 metric tons or 207,452,860 lb. That makes it about 2 lb of tea per head. In Japanese restaurants one can drink as much as one would like. The Japanese friends of my wife always offer tea the first thing they meet. We have 3 Japanese tea sets given as gift by Japanese and in Japanese groceries one can always find a selection of good Japanese tea.

Tea is drunk everywhere in Asia, but, this doesn't equate with knowing about tea as it is presented on boards like teachat and the many good blogs that are on the web.

For example, I live in a 33 story high rise with 95% Japanese families living here. They know I love tea and they often give me gifts of tea, which I happily accept and then give away to someone else because they are so commercial and low grade that I can't possibly drink it. But, it's the thought that counts. But, knowing about tea is a whole different matter.

[rdl]

For example, I live in a 33 story high rise with 95% Japanese families living here. They know I love tea and they often give me gifts of tea, which I happily accept and then give away to someone else because they are so commercial and low grade that I can't possibly drink it. But, it's the thought that counts. But, knowing about tea is a whole different matter.

i think you may be confusing two things. gift giving is a social act with levels of complexity. not commenting on your building or you personally, but the gifts you receive i think reflect the "social level" of gift giving rather than the "knowledge" of tea by the giver. you may be correct in stating that the japanese in general may not know much about tea. who in the states can discuss the complexities of wheat and bread, or cows and milk? and we consume a lot of those products. we are typically commercial buyers unless the passion for something pushes us to a higher quality and knowledge. i am just wondering; if your neighbors had to give a fine tea as a gift, i believe they would know if not what to buy at least which shop to go to and ask. you know your situation best, i just want to broaden the discussion and give the japanese the benefit of the doubt.

[TIM]

If ignorance is bliss .............. Why aren't there more happy people walking around?

[mbishop]

Also, if you give the "commercial" tea to other people, chances are good someone gave it to them, and now they are doing the same thing you do

[Tead Off]

Also, if you give the "commercial" tea to other people, chances are good someone gave it to them, and now they are doing the same thing you do

That's a very good point. I have no way of knowing but from my experience, when I have given good tea as a gift to people who are not really familiar with how to make good tea, it is rather pointless and I don't like to waste anything so better to pass it on as there are many casual drinkers.

But, this discussion was about organic tea and my point was that tea farmers are often interested in making money, not making handmade teas with love and care and with an eye towards ecology and wholeness. It is a choice one makes and we can see how the Japanese have chosen from the statistics posted.

[britt]

I have no way of knowing but from my experience, when I have given good tea as a gift to people who are not really familiar with how to make good tea, it is rather pointless and I don't like to waste anything so better to pass it on as there are many casual drinkers.

But, this discussion was about organic tea and my point was that tea farmers are often interested in making money, not making handmade teas with love and care and with an eye towards ecology and wholeness. It is a choice one makes and we can see how the Japanese have chosen from the statistics posted.

There are many people who drink tea all day everyday, and I agree that does not make them knowlegable about tea, but they do enthusiastically consume it.

When I give high grade tea to someone who just puts boiling water into their cup, I do not try to press them to brew it in a pot. Many never will. I account for that when I choose the tea to give them. Since I almost always give green tea, I do stress using cooler water, even if that means covering the leaves in the mug with cold water from the work dispenser before filling the remainder with hot water. Many co-workers do notice the quality of the tea when consumed this way, even though forum members may shudder.

I believe there are still quite a few tea farmers in Japan, China, and Taiwan who pay full attention to quality and processing. There are probably a lot more who are driven mostly by the money. This is okay considering the small proportion of the public that will pay $30+ dollars for 100 grams of tea. I believe, and hope, there will always be enough top-end tea producers to cover their customer base.

I think there is a major difference in the region where the tea is produced that is important to consider, especially with the commercial-grade tea. China has many safety issues with their food products, Taiwan has less, and Japan seems to have the highest consumer-safety standards of all. I will not personally drink cheap mainland Chinese tea or give it to anyone even if they ask me to pick them up some from a local Asian market. I have no such concern with commercial-grade Japanese products. I do drink Chinese teas on a regular basis, but I am very particular in choosing the vendor.

[rdl]

But, this discussion was about organic tea and my point was that tea farmers are often interested in making money, not making handmade teas with love and care and with an eye towards ecology and wholeness. It is a choice one makes and we can see how the Japanese have chosen from the statistics posted.

i am curious if a tea producer like FUKUJYUEN, which is owned by Suntory, is under more pressure to grow tea and therefore uses harmful growing methods to the ecology and wholeness, or does a hugh commercial conglomerate like Suntory allow a higher quality producer like Fukujyuen the means to be maybe not organic, but much more eco-friendly? Suntory's web site of couse is all about being green, but maybe the financial backing (and public pressure) of a conglomerate helps a once-independent producer remain operating in a constricting market and grow healthier tea for the ecology and drinker. or, is it all about making money?

[Tead Off]

But, this discussion was about organic tea and my point was that tea farmers are often interested in making money, not making handmade teas with love and care and with an eye towards ecology and wholeness. It is a choice one makes and we can see how the Japanese have chosen from the statistics posted.

i am curious if a tea producer like FUKUJYUEN, which is owned by Suntory, is under more pressure to grow tea and therefore uses harmful growing methods to the ecology and wholeness, or does a hugh commercial conglomerate like Suntory allow a higher quality producer like Fukujyuen the means to be maybe not organic, but much more eco-friendly? Suntory's web site of couse is all about being green, but maybe the financial backing (and public pressure) of a conglomerate helps a once-independent producer remain operating in a constricting market and grow healthier tea for the ecology and drinker. or, is it all about making money?

From my experience, I have never bought grocery store Japanese tea that I liked. Is it possible there is one that would appeal to me? Maybe, but, I'm not even interested in trying to find one. What interests me is small production farms that hand make organically grown teas that continue the tradition of 'connection with the earth'. For me, there ARE good teas that are not organic, but, this is not what I really want to buy and drink. I want to help support the farmer that is in harmony with the land and also makes good tea. I don't want any poisons or chemicals in my food if I have a choice. It's really simple.

[britt]

[/quote]From my experience, I have never bought grocery store Japanese tea that I liked. Is it possible there is one that would appeal to me? Maybe, but, I'm not even interested in trying to find one. [/quote]

I started off a few years back drinking Asian store Japanese teas, both loose and in teabags. I actually thought some of them were good. After purchasing tea online for 3 years, now I wouldn't touch what I started off drinking. When a relative recently made me a cup of tea with an Asian store brand of Japanese tea bag I had given her a while back, and she was still purchasing, I was not impressed. I sent her an order of teabags from Hibiki-an and she immediately noticed the difference. She also gets 3 or 4 cups per bag versus 1 for the grocery store bags, making the price difference far less important and in her opinion making the more expensive tea bags a better deal.

[chittychat]

The Japanese agricultural chemical sector is very strictly regulated most likely more so than what is called the organically grown sector.
When to spray, what to spray, how much to spray, residue levels etc are rules strongly enforced and supervised by agents I do think can not be bribed.
And farmers are business men which will not waste money uselessly. However, when a pest attacks and a farmer wants to survive he must
spray there is no going around it not even organically. I know what I am talking about it.(all cats are grey at night). I have seen may fields and orchards devasted by
pests some over night and farmers standing before them literally crying. Ever heard of the Irish famine caused by potatoe blight?

[Tead Off]

The Japanese agricultural chemical sector is very strictly regulated most likely more so than what is called the organically grown sector.
When to spray, what to spray, how much to spray, residue levels etc are rules strongly enforced and supervised by agents I do think can not be bribed.
And farmers are business men which will not waste money uselessly. However, when a pest attacks and a farmer wants to survive he must
spray there is no going around it not even organically. I know what I am talking about it.(all cats are grey at night). I have seen may fields and orchards devasted by
pests some over night and farmers standing before them literally crying. Ever heard of the Irish famine caused by potatoe blight?

Certainly, part of the concern of all farmers are pest attacks. But, every year, the same farms seem to be producing organically grown products and are committed to it. Nature has an intelligence far beyond what our minds think we know. An earth out of balance is a disaster as we see what is going on all over the world. Man creates the imbalance through his cleverness.

Last year, I posted a link to a German study showing pesticide use in Japan. If you think the Japanese are immune to skirting around issues just look at what happened to Toyota. Nothing is perfect and my original point still stands in favor of organic teas picked and processed by hand. Perhaps you should meet some of those tea farmers that are dedicated to this type of farming and see the kind of relationship they seem to have to their products. It is very heartwarming. Money is not the main issue with many of these people. It is a way of life and I hope it continues. But, it will only continue if people like myself support them.