Tea is one of the most popular drinks on the planet. Drunk daily by millions the world over, tea has the potential to restore and calm. Unfortunately the use of pesticides on many tea plantations means this delicious drink should be drunk with caution – unless you choose organic tea.

This brief clip shows an interview with the CEO of Honest Tea. The most important point raised here is to know that tea is not washed before production processes. This means that a certain amount of pesticide will remain on the leaves. Pesticides such as DDT, hexane, HCH, Dicofol, Fenvalerate, Methamidophos and Acephate are still used on tea plantations in some countries, despite being banned in other countries.

Although some pesticide residue will wash off when the rain comes, not all of it will. The workforce employed to tend and harvest the tea will be affected significantly by such pesticides. Bearing in mind that for China and India, tea is one of their largest crops, both for domestic and export markets, that will mean hundreds of thousands of people exposed to dangerous and life-threatening chemicals.

It really is a game of Russian Roulette when it comes to pesticides. Studies on long term, low dose exposure to pesticides and their residues are still ongoing. The implications for human health are not good. And that doesn’t even take into account the effect of pesticides on the surrounding environment: the soil, the biodiversity of animals and insects and the water table.

The best thing you can do is choose organic tea. It comes in all flavours, either as loose leaves or tea bags. The organic production means the workforce and environment are not being poisoned, you won’t worry about pesticide residues and it tastes delicious. It’s a very simple switch to make as part of your organic lifestyle.

Filed under: Organic Kitchen

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