All About Zero Waste Tea
Did you know that the majority of tea bags (both from organic and nonorganic brands) contain nylon or PLASTIC. The plastic is there to ensure that the tea bags don’t break. However, when put in hot water, plastic can start to leach micro plastics into your tea. Not only does it sound gross to be drinking plastic water, these bags are also not biodegradable and will last for hundreds of years on this planet. A great alternative is to purchase loose leaf tea. However, if you don’t have a bulk shop near you that sells big bags full of tea, you will have to resort to purchasing loose leaf in annoying plastic baggies that again aren’t recyclable or compostable. My best alternative is to purchase compostable tea bags!
Instead of using nylon and other plastic materials, these tea bags are a mix of corn starch and paper. This ensure that the paper doesn’t disintegrate as soon as it hits the hot water. Now, it's always a better option to purchase your tea from big paper bags (like what bulk items usually come in) instead of tea bags wrapped in individual paper pouches. However, I feel like it’s important to create items that are easy for more to access.
Accessibility is something that more and more people are starting to discuss in the zero waste/ sustainability community. In the list of plastic free tea bags listed below, I have also added where I can find these type of teas and the prices (ranging from as little as $2-3, up to $8-10). This is important because not everyone has access to a local organic shop or has the financial means to spend 12-20 dollars for a box of tea. I would also like to add that you can find most of these teas on Amazon, which can help many out if you are in a food desert.
Yogi Tea-
This is my personal favorite because I can find it everywhere, including Walmart for $3. That is insanely cheap for a sustainable product. They also make all of their packaging out of paper, cardboard, and soy ink. Everything, including the box, can be put into the compost. A lot of their teas are also organic and all of their tea is fair trade!
Tea Pigs-
This company is another favorite, but is definitely on the more expensive side at $8 a box. I can only find it at my local health food store. The tea is organic and fair trade. They a pretty good selection of teas, but unfortunately their bags are put in a plastic bag to ensure they stay fresh instead of paper. This is the biggest reason why I have decided to stop purchasing their tea.
Traditional Medicinals-
This company is a great one if you are looking for some classic remedies! They are regularly available at many stores, including my main grocery store. They are usually around $5 a box. I personally love their Lavender and Chamomile Tea for at night, which is all organic and fair trade. They entire box and tea bags are compostable and the company itself runs on renewable energy!! Better yet, they explain all of their companies information on the box itself so no research necessary!
Choice Tea-
I haven't yet to try this company out yet, but I find that they are available at my local health food store. Like the ones above, they have remarkable values and packaging! They also have an organization that is attached to the company and make sure that their farmers are satisfied. They aren't too expensive at $5 a box and are completely compostable and organic. They also now have mushroom teas for people who are interested in mushrooms for anxiety and depression.
Numi Tea-
Like Tea Pigs, Numi Tea is on the expensive side at $8 a box. They do use a lot of turmeric and ginger in their tea. I personally enjoy their turmeric and black teas once in a while. The company is very similar to the ones above, and continues to work with farmers in India to bring sustainable and organic tea to the rest of the world. They also have a rooibos tea that I was obsessed with in college. Unfortunately, my local health food store stopped caring it.
Reshi Tea-
This is another company on the higher end, that makes a lot of interesting Tea Blends. You may have heard Catlin Shoemaker from FromMyBowl mention their Turmeric and Ginger tea. They are around $7-8 a box. Unfortunately, I haven't been able to find them at many of my local health food stores.
These are just a small list of the amount of teas that come in compostable packaging. I feel like everytime I go to the grocery store, I am pleasently surprised to see more companies moving away from using plastic in their tea bags! Please let me know what your favorites are in the comments below!