Tea Biz

Hosted by Dan Bolton

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About the show

The Voice of Tea Lands | Tea Journey Magazine , founded in 2015, and the Tea Biz Blog | Podcast are favorites of tea enthusiasts and professionals worldwide. Content is authentic, timely, and exclusive, a collaborative effort that enlists 40 voices skilled in 12 languages to tell the story of tea. Coverage spans tea discovery and preparation to tea tourism, lifestyles, health and wellness, meditation, culinary tea with recipes, and terroir. Our business coverage offers insights for commercial producers supported by rich market data and scientifically backed research. Transparency is rooted in authentic storytelling, featuring nuanced articles about the places and people who passionately live a life in tea. As a niche publication, Tea Journey relies on reader contributions for most of its income. Please consider donating to support the writers and staff who bring you our unique tea content from around the globe. We appreciate your support. In 2025, we teamed up with our good friends at OverSubscribe, a platform that lets our fans make real financial investments in our future. By contributing as little as $25 to Tea Journey , you’re not just supporting our publication—you’re joining a lively global community and earning a return on your investment. | https://teajourney.oversub.me/

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2 min

Tea Price Report | Week 21 | Ending 22 May 2026

Quality Holds, Averages Ease | Tea markets closed ISO Week 21 with functional demand but a wider separation between quality teas and secondary descriptions. The market is not distressed, but it is more selective.Colombo saw fair demand, though the total sales average eased from the previous week. North India remained active, especially for improved teas and dusts, but Sale 21 averages moved lower from Sales 20. Mombasa stayed orderly against the latest available official benchmark, while Indonesia showed the clearest demand tone, with Van Rees reporting good demand for the week. | In Colombo, prices averaged $3.62/kg this week, ↓ -$0.20/kg vs the previous sale average, Sale 19 / 20 May 2026. In North India, prices averaged $2.47/kg this week, ↓ -$0.13/kg vs reconstructed prior auction benchmark, Sale 20. In Mombasa, prices averaged $2.18/kg this week, → 0.00/kg vs last available official average, EATTA Sale 17 CTC. In Indonesia, prices averaged $2.41/kg this week, → 0.00/kg vs prior indicative benchmark. | The structural drivers remain familiar: buyers are covering needs, not building speculative positions; exporters are defending prices where quality allows; and cost pressures from freight, energy, and FX remain a swing factor, especially for lower-value teas. | Podlink signup: https://pod.link/1549975153Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

27 min

Spotlight | The Power of Feedback

Can Anonymous Worker Feedback Become a Market Signal in Tea? | Glassmarks founder Guy Chambers believes the tea industry is approaching a structural turning point. For decades, ethical sourcing systems relied heavily on audits, certifications, and private compliance reports. But consumers increasingly want transparency, while producers who invest in better working conditions often receive little recognition or commercial advantage.Glassmarks attempts to address that gap by creating a continuous, anonymous worker feedback system focused on three indicators: Safety, Fairness, and Voice. Workers complete a one-minute survey in their own language. Results are aggregated into public-facing signals designed to help workers, managers, and buyers identify and improve workplace conditions in real time.In this Tea Biz Spotlight, Chambers discusses why he believes traditional audit systems are failing, why “the information layer” has disappeared from global supply chains, and how anonymous worker feedback could eventually become a competitive market signal within tea sourcing.Bio: Glassmarks founder and Executive Chairman Guy Chambers has spent more than three decades in the global beverage industry, including leadership roles in China’s ready-to-drink tea sector and as former CEO of Finlays. His current work focuses on building transparency, worker feedback systems, and continuous improvement models for supply chains. | Podlink signup: https://pod.link/1549975153Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

10 min

Tea News Recap | Sri Lanka Slumps, Assam Struggles, Türkiye Rises

Middle East Conflict Dramatically Lowers Sri Lanka Tea Exports | Assam Unrest Reveals Deeper Industry Strains | Turkish Tea Finds a Bigger Export Market | Podlink signup: https://pod.link/1549975153Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

44 min

Ep 241 | Sri Lanka Slumps, Assam Struggles, Türkiye Rises

Middle East Conflict Dramatically Lowers Sri Lanka Tea Exports | Assam Unrest Reveals Deeper Industry Strains | Turkish Tea Finds a Bigger Export Market - Guy Chambers, Founder, Executive Chairman, GlassmarksPLUS | The Power of Feedback | What if anonymous worker feedback became reliable and pervasive? Could feedback be powerful enough to reshape tea sourcing?For decades, ethical tea relied on audits and certifications. But what if the people closest to production — the workers themselves — became the source of continuous improvement? Guy Chambers, former CEO at Finlays and founder of Glassmarks, designed the not-for-profit platform around three simple ideas: Safety, Fairness, and Voice. Workers complete a one-minute anonymous survey. The results are aggregated and shared to encourage continuous improvement. The idea is simple. Could worker feedback become an information layer that tea has been missing? | Podlink signup: https://pod.link/1549975153Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

2 min

Tea Price Report | Week 19 | Ending 15 May

In Sri Lanka, stronger competition persisted for cleaner, high-grown, well-manufactured teas, while secondary descriptions continued to encounter resistance. | In Colombo, prices averaged $3.24/kg this week, ↑ +$0.03/kg vs the previous week (Week 18), supported by continued supply tightness and stronger competition for select high-grown and well-manufactured leafy teas.In North India, prices averaged $1.93/kg this week, ↑ by $0.04/kg vs the last reported average (Week 18), reflecting steady buying support for stronger liquoring North Indian teas and improved demand from blenders and exporters.In Mombasa, prices averaged $2.23/kg, unchanged from the previous week (Sale 18 benchmark), supported by broadly stable buyer participation and orderly market clearance conditions.In Indonesia, prices averaged $2.43/kg this week, ↑ by $0.02/kg vs the prior benchmark, reflecting improved support for orthodox teas and tighter available supply.The broader market structure remains unchanged. Buyers continue to prioritize execution quality and blend reliability, while exporters remain disciplined because freight, financing, and energy costs continue to support pricing floors across the major origins. | Podlink signup: https://pod.link/1549975153Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

10 min

Spotlight | Regenerative Farming Begins by Doing Less

Regenerative agriculture has become one of the tea industry’s most discussed concepts, but definitions often remain vague. Producers, traders, and brand owners generally agree that healthier soils and more resilient ecosystems matter. The harder question is what regenerative farming actually looks like in practice on a working tea farm.For Michael D. Ham, the answer begins with restraint. On Jeju Island in South Korea, Wild Orchard Tea grows tea without irrigation, synthetic fertilizers, or intensive intervention. The objective is not simply sustainability, but long-term biological resilience.In this SPOTLIGHT conversation, Ham discusses soil microbiology, biodiversity, root depth, and why the tea industry may need to rethink how it measures success beyond short-term yield. | BIO Michael D. Ham is the founder of Wild Orchard Tea, a regenerative organic tea company sourcing from Jeju Island, South Korea. He is an advocate for regenerative agriculture in tea and works closely with growers focused on soil health, biodiversity, and long-term ecological stewardship. | Podlink signup: https://pod.link/1549975153Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

12 min

Tea News Recap | Fertilizer Crisis | Tea Day | India Auction Mandate

Fertilizer Shock Threatens Tea Quality, Yields, and Costs | International Tea Day Events Expand Across Global Markets | India Pushes Ahead with Contested Tea Auction Mandate | Podlink signup: https://pod.link/1549975153Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

30 min

Fertilizer Crisis | Tea Day | India Auction Mandate

Fertilizer Shock Threatens Tea Quality, Yields, and Costs | International Tea Day Events Expand Across Global Markets | India Pushes Ahead with Contested Tea Auction MandateNEWSMAKER – Michael D. Ham, CEO of Wild Orchard TeaPLUS | Regenerative Farming Begins by Doing LessRegenerative agriculture has become one of the tea industry’s most discussed concepts, but definitions often remain vague. Producers, traders, and brand owners generally agree that healthier soils and more resilient ecosystems matter. The harder question is what regenerative farming actually looks like in practice on a working tea farm.For Michael D. Ham, the answer begins with restraint. On Jeju Island in South Korea, Wild Orchard Tea grows tea without irrigation, synthetic fertilizers, or intensive intervention. The objective is not simply sustainability, but long-term biological resilience.In this SPOTLIGHT conversation, Ham discusses soil microbiology, biodiversity, root depth, and why the tea industry may need to rethink how it measures success beyond short-term yield. | Podlink signup: https://pod.link/1549975153Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

2 min

Tea Price Report | Week 17 | Ending 24 April 2026

Tea markets closed WEEK 17 with prices edging firmer across the major auction centers, but the underlying signal remains quality, not volume. | Across Colombo, North India, Mombasa, and Indonesia, buyers continued to participate, but with discipline. Competition focused on clean, well-manufactured teas needed for immediate blending and export commitments. Secondary grades remained more difficult to secure, requiring price adjustments or weaker bidding. | Pricing reflects that structure clearly. In Colombo, prices averaged $3.24 per kilo, up three cents week-on-week. North India averaged $1.92, up four cents on the last available official benchmark. Mombasa came in at $2.23, up two cents on the prior sale, while Indonesia averaged $2.44, also up three cents on an indicative basis.| Podlink signup: https://pod.link/1549975153Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

15 min

Spotlight | RegenTea and the Economics of Soil

On Earth Day, it’s easy to talk about sustainability in broad terms—but much harder to connect those ideas to what’s actually happening on the ground. | For tea producers, climate pressure is no longer abstract. It’s showing up in yield, cost, and long-term viability. | What we’re exploring today is a different approach—one that attempts to measure soil health, biodiversity, and resilience, and link those directly to economic outcomes.BIO: Annabel Kalmar is the founder of Tea Rebellion and a trustee of RegenTea, a UK-based foundation advancing regenerative agriculture in tea. She works with origin partners across Africa and Asia and is leading a multi-country pilot focused on farm-level data and soil health. | Podlink signup: https://pod.link/1549975153Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

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