In December of 2006, History Channel broadcast this excellent and well-produced, 45-minute documentary on the history of tea and the American tea industry. For those of you who missed it or would like to see it again; we are making it available here via Hulu.

Information and links about the people and companies featured in the video

James Norwood Pratt is an American tea writer and authority raised and educated in North Carolina. His best known for his book The Tea Lover’s Treasury.  His entire book series can be seen here. His website can be found at http://www.teasociety.org

The Dutch brought tea to Europe in the 17th century where it made its way across to England. It was the East India Company that spread the tea industry across the globe and used it as one of their many tools to cement their economic monopoly.

The massive, 55-year-old Lipton Tea plant located in Suffolk, Virgina was recognized in 2009 as a zero-landfill facility. Through their recycling program they have eliminated all of their waste that once went into landfills. Unilever Lipton continues to move toward their 2015 sustainability goals.

Lipton has expanded its product range to include higher-quality, and even some loose leaf blends. John Cheetham is still a tea master at Lipton Royal Estates. His expertise has helped Lipton expand their line. Lipton Tea continues to be the largest mass-market tea seller in the United States.

Celestial Seasonings is solely responsible for the prevelance of herbal tea in America. They broke down the barrier between Camellia senensis based tea and herbal tea. A tea purist might say that the majority of Celestial Seasonings products are tisanes (tee-zahns) and not tea.  They are most well-known for the interesting and colorful artwork on their boxes. Celestial Seasonings produces new blends and products monthly as part of the plan to keep their product line fresh.

Dr. Tea, Mark Ukra, continues his campaign to spread knowledge and information about tea. He is a prolific tea advocate in print, television, and radio. He maintains an extensive library of tea information at his website and produces a weekly video about tea at Teatips.tv.