Here in South Africa, tea is like a national drink, but our obsession doesn’t come close to the English. A new survey reveals that Britons use 61-billion tea bags a year, which is enough to cover almost 31 000 soccer pitches.
The poll, commissioned by tea brand JING Tea, surveyed 2000 tea drinkers to find out more about their consumption patterns. On average, participants use four tea bags a day, which equals 1460 per person per year.
One-third of tea drinkers turn to a cosy cup of tea for comfort, while over one in 20 use tea as a crutch during a crisis. It’s thus no surprise that during lockdown, tea drinking has seen a 27% increase.
The survey also found that for tea drinkers, taste is the top priority when selecting a tea. This is followed by the cost and then its sustainability.
However, most are quite unadventurous when it comes to trying something new. One-third of participants have enjoyed tea the exact same way for their entire life, while 58% would be interested in experimenting.
Loose leaf tea has become more popular amid the pandemic, with 22% of participants saying they will consume more in the new year. 29% believe this is a more sustainable choice.
“Britain is known as a nation of tea drinkers, but we’ve traditionally been very unadventurous in our drinking,” said Ed Eisler, founder of JING Tea.
“Given how many teabags we get through, it is great to see more people exploring the world of loose leaf teas, particularly since the lockdowns began. It’s a simple switch that is better for you and better for the planet.”
