Organic Tea Vs Non-Organic Tea: All You Need to Know

After years long production and usage of synthetic fertilizers, pesticides, and herbicides to produce “quality” products, it has now become evident that there are consequences in our alteration of the environment which is why we now seek the label “organic” in our food products believing that these are better.

This is true not only for the food we usually eat but also for drinks like teas where we cannot determine if it is really organic with just its flavor unlike vegetables which we can examine through their shape and color.

However, is drinking organic tea really better than commercial non-organic tea?

What makes it organic?

All teas in the olden times can be considered as organic since teas have been present for a few thousand years when the land was not yet exposed to excessive pollution and GMOs. 

There is a legend which says that tea originated 5000 years ago in China when Shen Nong, then an emperor and the father of Traditional Chinese Medicine drank from the cup of hot water where a tea leaf fell and immediately saw the impact of the herb on his body due to the transparency of his skin. 

The teas from that period are closest to organic production as they are harvested from wild tea trees and not cultivated tea plants. However, the label “organic” should now follow a set of principles made by the government’s food and agriculture organizations.

Basically, the four principles of organic agriculture dictates that it has to (1) undividedly sustain and enhance the soil, animal, plant, and human health, (2) support, emulate, and sustain the living ecological systems and cycles, (3) fair in both the environment and life opportunities, and (4) take precaution to promote the health and well-being of current and future generations and the environment.

Also, the land to be used in cultivation of organic products should remain free of pesticides, herbicides and chemicals for three year to be provided a certification.

The reason to choose organic

Research conducted in Newcastle University in the UK has shown that organic food products provide up to 18% to 69% increase in antioxidants when compared to non-organic food but when it comes to tea, things may be different. 

Teas contain Epigallocatechin gallate (EGCG), a type of catechin that has cytotoxic, antioxidant, and anti-inflammatory properties which makes tea an ideal drink. 

One of the most common teas is green tea which may contain up to 203 mg of EGCG per gram of dried leaves. However, there are some green tea varieties that only contain as low as 16 mg of EGCG per gram which means that even with 69% increase by producing organically, it will still be less than the 203 mg in a non-organic tea.

But, this is not a reason to be discouraged as it is still evident that choosing an organic alternative is comparable to eating 1 to 2 extra portions because of its additional antioxidants which is known to reduce the risk for chronic diseases such as cancer, heart disease, and even neurodegenerative diseases.

Not only that, organic products contain almost 50% less cadmium, a metal contaminant, and 10% less nitrogen concentration compared to conventional crops. It is even found that it is four times more likely to find pesticides in conventional crops than in organic ones.

Twrl Milk Tea: An authentic organic milk tea

Twrl Milk Tea is a rising star in the milk tea trend worldwide but we do not just market ourselves as a simple milk tea as we went beyond and made the world’s first canned organic milk tea made with organic tea and pea milk.

We believe that the tea part of milk tea is very crucial, which is why instead of being blinded by big-name companies, we sought authenticity, leading us to exceptional family tea growers in the provinces of ShanDong and Yunnan in China who provides us with single-origin, fair-trade organic tea.

Throughout generations, these families have spent their time in searching for the optimal terrain to plant each tea variety, even going as far as to grow and harvest them from the wild. Moreover, the family provides a delicate ecosystem for the plants to thrive resulting in pest-resistant plants that produce more luscious teas. That’s what we call beyond organic! 

Tasty comes through biodiversity

The reemergence of organic tea will give life not only to the environment’s biodiversity but also to our health with the help of the antioxidants that it brings.

And if you are not fond of that bitter and dry taste, we can give you Twrl! A canned organic milk tea goodness that gives you not only the elegance of organic tea but also the grace of pea milk: a beautiful Twrl of flavors.