United States
Tariffs May Trigger Rival Trade Blocs
Uncertainty over tariffs that impose stiff import duties on coffee and tea remain a pressing concern despite word the US and China are nearing a trade war truce. Read more
USDA Issues Interim Rules for US Hemp Production
The US Department of Agriculture in November published interim final rules for the cultivation and production of hemp products a year after the US legalized non-psychoactive cannabinoids. Read more
FDA Advises CBD is Not Safe
US consumers spent millions adding oils to their coffee, sipping hemp tea and CBD cold brew, and more following the December 2018 legalization of hemp cultivation. Underpinning the rush to experiment was the false assumption that it was safe. Read more
US Retail Coffee Sales Total $87 Billion
Retail coffee in the United States continued to grow in 2018 topping out at $87 billion in sales, according to a new report issued in November by the Specialty Coffee Association. Read more
Coffee Expands with U.S. Support
A five-year agriculture program supported with U.S. dollars recently ended with about 40,000 farmers showing improvement in production and expansion of export markets. Now, a new initiative begins to push those accomplishments even further. Read more
Bigelow Certified as B Corp
Bigelow Tea has joined a very small number of companies certified as B Corporations, where B stands for benefits. These companies have shown a proven commitment to making their business “a positive force for social and environmental change.” Read more
CBD Coffee
American Shaman, an American retailer known for its enthusiasm for CBD, notes that now that cultivating hemp is legal in the United States is a rush to deliver more palatable and convenient forms of cannabidiol, the non-psychoactive companion to THC. Read more
Taxing Circumstances
Consumers in the US are now paying a putative 15% tariff on Chinese tea with the possibility of further increases as high as 25% in the months ahead. Read more
Walmart Features Ito En Tea
Ito En has contracted with Walmart to stock two of its top-selling teas nationwide in the US. Read more
Tariffs Roil Coffee and Tea Market
Decoupling the deeply entwined US and Chinese trade relationships will have a profound and largely negative impact on coffee and tea retail. Read more
US Coffee Drinkers Prize Freshness
A poll of 2,000 US coffee drinkers by Peet’s Coffee & Tea shows the importance of coffee freshness and flavor. Read more
Avoiding Tariffs in a Trade War
While the impacts of the inclusion of Chinese tea imports in the U.S. trade war are unclear and the details labyrinthine, one certainty is that there will be tariff evasion. This is a sophisticated, pervasive art form in world trade. Read more
Jollibee Looks for More Acquisitions
The Philippine fast-food giant that purchased Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf in July, has expressed an interest in additional mergers or acquisitions in the United States and China. Read more
US Tariffs Begin on Chinese Tea and Coffee
A 15% tariff on Chinese tea and coffee imports effective Sept. 1 is proving hard to swallow. Read more
FTC Reviewing Detox Tea
The US Federal Trade Commission is reviewing social media promotions by the makers of “detox” teas. Read more
Tea Industry Faces Disruptive 10% Tariff
Continued volatility poses a threat to processed coffees Read more
American Consumers Pay Tea Tariff on Sept. 1
For the first time since the country’s founding, U.S. consumers will pay a 10% tariff on Chinese tea beginning Sept. 1. Read more
Tariff on Chinese Tea Likely
All the tea from China will be taxed at least 10% if the Trump Administration carries through on its threat to impose a $300 billion round of tariffs effective Sept. 1. Read more
Interest in Hemp Coffee and Tea Grows
Musician Willie Nelson produces CBD coffee and tea while the US Food and Drug Administration holds hearings on whether to classify the hemp molecule as an ingredient in foods and drink and possibly a regulated drug. Read more
Tea Industry Wary Despite Tariff Truce
The US tea industry drew a collective sigh of relief following President Donald Trump’s late-June decision to postpone levying tariffs on $300 billion in Chinese goods. Chinese President Xi Jinping agreed to a resumption of trade negotiations. Read more
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