Another challenge for black tea is that even for those for whom it is a staple, costs are rising and so they are buying in smaller volumes.
In 1974, the average family purchased 68g – about 30 tea bags – of tea per person, per week. By 2023, that had gone down to 19g – about 10 tea bags – per person, according to government figures, external.
“What’s particularly telling of the potential long-term threat for black tea is that while all age groups have similarly high usage of tea in the early morning and with breakfast, younger groups are much less likely than older ones to reach for the drink later in the day,” says Mintel’s Kiti Soininen.
She concludes with a stark warning for traditional tea makers – if younger generations continue with these habits as they get older, this will ultimately “chip away” at the size of the market.
And as one BBC reader commented on the Typhoo collapse story: “You know things are bad when a tea company in the UK goes bust.”
