There’s a brand new craze sweeping America. These are flavored iced tea which are typically basic black tea that’s jazzed with fruit or herbal infusions, and drank cold from tall glasses.
The ready-to-drink iced tea segment in the past 15 years has grown from $200 million to over $2 billion in annual sales, said Joe Simrany, president of the New York-based Tea Association of the U.S.A. It’s the single biggest segment of the tea market, and it explains why iced tea comprises more than 85% of all tea sales, according to Simrany.
The health benefits of tea are luring many people to cold tea drinks. Tea is considered an excellent source of immune system-building antioxidants.
As awareness grows, more consumers are insisting on better quality teas and are seeking out organic and Fair Trade blends.
The iced tea market is growing dramatically, observers say, and is expected to continue its upward ascent in the years to come.
According to Simrany of the tea association, many consumers are re-evaluating their diets, and some who previously drank sugar- and calorie-laden juices or soft drinks are coming over to tea. Herbal tea blends for instance, are increasing in popularity as awareness on various kinds of herbal tea benefits increase.
Green tea garners the most attention when it comes to bannering health benefits, Simrany said. But that’s because Asian scientists are the ones doing most of the research, and green tea is popular in Asia. Black tea has nearly identical components, he said.
You get the sense there’s a whole world of teas, just waiting to be iced.
