Issue link: https://read.dmtmag.com/i/491365
STiR tea & coffee industry international 21 K L O T H & K Ö H N K E N T E E H A N D E L G M B H K O N S U L - S M I D T - S T R A S S E 8 j SPEICHER 1 - D -282 17 BREMEN FON + 4 9 - 4 2 1 - 3 4 8 5 2 6 4 FAX + 4 9 - 4 2 1 - 3 4 7 7 7 2 0 W W W . K K T E E . D E M A I L @ K K T E E . D E IT SUITS ALL MERCHANTS TO TRADE FAIR AND QUALI-TEA ! Eteaket Nutritional Research Edinburgh based specialty tea company eteaket has joined forces with food and drink scientists from Queen Margaret University to provide customers with more detailed nutritional information about caffeine and antioxidant levels in its teas. eteaket identified QMU as the academic partner with the widest skills and knowledge for analyzing the science behind its range of 30 loose-leaf teas. Researchers at QMU have extensive experience of identifying the antioxidant content of a wide variety of food and drink products, including undertaking a number of studies which have assessed the nutritional and health benefits of antioxidant rich drinks. Dr. Mary Warnock, senior lecturer in microbiology at Queen Margaret University, explained, "Tea contains numerous different natural chemicals which act as antioxidants, including vitamin C (ascorbic acid) and tannins. Antioxidants play a valuable role in maintaining good health. They can help protect cells from damage and are important in the fight against disease. Our research showed that eteaket's English breakfast had the greatest antioxidant content and the Silver Needle white tea had the least. Oriental Oolong and English Breakfast contained the most caffeine while Decaf Breakfast and Big Red Rooibos contained none or negli- gible amounts." Learn more: www. eteaket.co.uk or contact Jonathan Perkins at QMU JPerkins@qmu.ac.uk UK New Sri Lankan Tea Ambassador In May Mike Bunston, ex-chairman of London Tea Brokers Wilson Smithett, was appointed Honorary Tea Ambassa- dor for Ceylon Tea in U.K. by the Sri Lanka Tea Board. His first role was to head up a two-week promotion of Ceylon Tea in Harrods Food Hall in London in June. There will be more events later in the year. The Harrods event featured a selection of low, mid- and high-grown teas from some of Sri Lanka's most famous garden, including Lovers Leap and Loolecondera, the estate where James Taylor first planted tea in the 1860s. TEAm Up Conference In London delegates to the annual TEAm Up conference, jointly hosted by The Ethical Tea Partnership and IDH – the Sustainable Trade Initiative, updated producers, packers and retailers on the progress of their pioneering projects and explored how action to tackle them can secure supply chains and build brands' reputation. TEAm Up organizers acknowledged it will take more than government programs to resolve key social and environmental issues affecting the sector. "It is amazing to see how the tea industry is making serious efforts and investments to address difficult issues such as wages and smallholder inclusion," said IDH chief executive Joost Oorthui- zen. "These and other deeply rooted problems, that only a few years ago were 'owned' by civil society groups, are now high on the agenda of the international tea industry. We can use this positive energy by working together, and collabo- rating with retailers, government agencies and NGOs, who all have a part to play." ETP and IDH also announced a very successful pilot program of outdoor classrooms that has trained 48,000 Kenyan smallholders to improve their agricultural skills and to process tea. ETP announced a coalition of major tea companies would expand the program to 200,000 smallholders in Africa and Asia's tea growing countries within the next three years. ETP's hands-on training in irrigation, composting, plant nutrition and protec- tion from insects has increased yields by as much as a third. The Kenya Tea Development Agency (KTDA) supports the program through 1,600 Farmer Field Schools. "Tea provides a livelihood for millions of people around the globe. These projects show that the industry is committed to helping smallholder farmers and workers earn a decent wage and farm better, and that it understands that this is fundamental to building secure supply chains and future success," said ETP executive director Sarah Roberts. Targeted nations include Malawi, Uganda, Rwanda, Tanzania, India, and Vietnam. The effort is funded by multi-nationals including Unilever and Tata Global Beverage and Taylors of Harrogate. Learn more: www.ethical- teapartnership.org