My Chinese Tea Experiment

[Xue Sheng]

A few months back I read the "Pesticides: Hidden Ingredients in Chinese Tea" report from Green Peace.

I have lots of Chinese tea purchased in China because I drink lots of tea, But after the report I decided to switch to organic tea for a while and see what happened, if anything.

Well, I noticed that before if I drank too much tea, or at least what I perceived as too much tea and the as the only link I could find, I would get a sore in my mouth.

I switched to organic tea and that does not happen at all...interesting... now I have to get rid of all my Chinese tea..... and I'm not happy about it :disgust:

 

[seasoned]

You would be surprised that not only tea but everything we eat is the same way. The government is allowing by proxy, that we all get poisoned slowly, while our health care costs keep going up....

 

[Bob Hubbard]

I've been migrating to organic teas. Numi, Rishi and a few others. A little more $$ but worth it I think.

 

[K-man]

A few months back I read the "Pesticides: Hidden Ingredients in Chinese Tea" report from Green Peace.

I have lots of Chinese tea purchased in China because I drink lots of tea, But after the report I decided to switch to organic tea for a while and see what happened, if anything.

Well, I noticed that before if I drank too much tea, or at least what I perceived as too much tea and the as the only link I could find, I would get a sore in my mouth.

I switched to organic tea and that does not happen at all...interesting... now I have to get rid of all my Chinese tea..... and I'm not happy about it :disgust:

Not sure that Greenpeace got it right.

Here is what Nigel Melican, one of the leading tea experts in the international tea industry, had to say on Linkedin in case you missed it.


“(i) Pesticides traces are universal in food – no tea in the world can have absolutely totally zero pesticides – nor can or does an organic apple or carrot. Consequently Maximum Residue Levels (MRLs) are set by importing countries. Presence of a chemical below the maximum safe level is accepted – but Greenpeace (through ignorance or ingenuousness) ignores this and rants against “drinking toxic pesticides in their tea” while naming and shaming some tea companies with well below MRL levels – no libel laws in China?
(ii) No reference is made in the lengthy Greenpeace China report to MRLs – particularly the EU MRLs which are internationally accepted. In fact, if you take the considerable trouble of comparing the Greenpeace data with EU pesticide limits for the 28 chemicals mentioned then 5 of the 18 teas accused actually fall below the MRL limits for all 28 and two more tea exceed by a trace level of 1 mg/kg on 2 chemicals. This leaves 11 teas non-compliant for one or more pesticides, were they to be sold in the EU.
(iii) These teas were purchased in the local Chinese market so Greenpeace China should have been comparing them with Chinese MRL legislation – they may very well be compliant with this (I do not have access to Chinese MRLs).
(iv) Nowhere in the report does Greenpeace China suggest that the non compliant teas are representative of China teas presented for Export – but commentators in the USA and UK have erroneously and immediately jumped to this conclusion.”


I would like to add that there are very strict penalties for trying to export contaminated Chinese teas, and as Nigel rightly points out, the MRLs are set by the importing country. China is very conscientious about inspecting tea for export, and does real testing. Testing for contaminates is relatively inexpensive. The Chinese government is very serious about not having another food contamination scandal, notice there hasn’t been one since 2008, when they beefed up their export laws. (Don’t forget that they shot the head of the Chinese FDA over contaminated drugs.)
http://www.sevencups.com/2012/10/greenpeace-and-the-safety-of-chinese-tea/

:asian:

 

[granfire]

you need to do some more research...Green Peace has gone off the deep end a few decades back...

 

[Bob Hubbard]

http://foodbabe.com/2013/08/21/do-you-know-whats-really-in-your-tea/
http://www.collective-evolution.com/2013/10/26/whats-in-your-mug-the-toxic-truth-about-tea/

take with grain of salt. Some research was "done" by a company that makes money on stock trading.

 

[Kung Fu Wang]

I would get a sore in my mouth.

I never have such problem. The only tea that I'm drinking today are:

http://www.tenren.com/supo.html

or

http://www.tenren.com/pouc1stgrad.html

 

[Brian R. VanCise]

On a different take a while back I was in San Francisco and Chinatown in particular. We went to a Tea Store and tasted a variety and then bought some. Came back home and had that tea for a month or so about once a day or every other day. It was fantastic!!! Absolutely some of the best tea I have ever had. I will say that with the price we paid I believe it probably was organic. Simply amazing tea. There website is here: www.aromateashop.com

Personally I like the Supreme Goldan Monkey black tea!

 

[Xue Sheng]

On a different take a while back I was in San Francisco and Chinatown in particular. We went to a Tea Store and tasted a variety and then bought some. Came back home and had that tea for a month or so about once a day or every other day. It was fantastic!!! Absolutely some of the best tea I have ever had. I will say that with the price we paid I believe it probably was organic. Simply amazing tea. There website is here: www.aromateashop.com

Personally I like the Supreme Goldan Monkey black tea!

That is what I find most annoying. I have some GREAT tea from Beijing (Ti Kuan Yin, Jasmine Tea, pu erh) and at least 2 of those come from the companies listed.

 

[Brian R. VanCise]

I don't know but I am not giving up my great tea. Not happening!

 

[Transk53]

Reading all the above, do I, or should I, give up coffee and drink tea instead?

 

[Bob Hubbard]

Drink both. Both have health properties.

 

[granfire]

That is what I find most annoying. I have some GREAT tea from Beijing (Ti Kuan Yin, Jasmine Tea, pu erh) and at least 2 of those come from the companies listed.

If you are really that concerned, could you have some tested for your own piece of mind?

 

[Xue Sheng]

between the report and knowing what I know about food stuff in Beijing based on what family there are saying, it is best to just toss it and buy organic... and hope that it actually is organic.

 

[oaktree]

I perfer japanese green tea.
Chinese green tea just doesn't have the same quality.

 

[Kung Fu Wang]

I perfer japanese green tea. Chinese green tea just doesn't have the same quality.

I have to disagree with you on this. This "Superfine Pouchong" which cost $196 a lb is an excellent tea that no Japanese tea that I know will be able to match it. The nice thing about this tea is you can eat it after you drink it.

http://www.tenren.com/supo.html

 

[oaktree]

that comes to be about $12 an oz plenty
Of teas at that price.
$12 an oz about mid grade. To each their own tea and wine are all about the person's palete

 

[crushing]

My Chinese tea experiment consisted of combining lapshang souchong tea with some rooibos tea and adding the infusion to a homebrewed Ahtanum hoppedIndia Pale ale at bottling. No mouth sores from this.

 

[Kung Fu Wang]

that comes to be about $12 an oz plenty
Of teas at that price.
$12 an oz about mid grade. To each their own tea and wine are all about the person's palete

I can't taste any difference between Johnnie Walker black vs. Johnnie Walker red. I can't even taste any difference between Johnnie Walker blue vs. Johnnie Walker red. But I can taste the difference between a good tea from a not so good tea.

 

[oaktree]

Black label more oak and smoke less
Smoke and intese then double black,
Red a less harsh version used mostly for
Mixes about 5 year scotch.
Gold label 18 years mellow. Blue supposedly 20 and up blend smooth however some
Perfer gold. Platinum label the gold version for
Uk market most prefer the gold.
Walker wants to get rid of the gold and green
But keep platinum and gold reserve.
Again in scotch depends on the person and palete.
And the single malt guys
Are in a league of their own!