Tea Blog

With all due respect to the residents of the fiftieth state, most people tend to think of Hawaii primarily as a vacation destination known for its tropical climate and exports such as pineapple, macadamia nuts, and Kona coffee.

In recent years, however, Hawaii has also begun to establish itself—on a modest scale—as a producer of another popular beverage: tea.

As noted in previous discussions on this site, the United States is not typically associated with large-scale tea production. The most established effort remains in South Carolina, where the Charleston Tea Plantation continues to operate. More recent initiatives have appeared in states such as Washington, California, and Mississippi.

For those interested in learning more about tea cultivation in Hawaii,

the Hawaii Tea Society website with information on local growers and industry development

provides a useful starting point.

Although tea may have been grown in Hawaii as early as the late 19th century, significant commercial interest has only emerged in the past couple of decades. Early modern efforts were supported by research initiatives involving the USDA and the University of Hawaii, which explored tea as a potential diversification crop.

According to

this report on the early development of Hawaii’s tea industry
,
production was extremely limited in the mid-2000s, with only a few acres under cultivation.

More recently, policy efforts have aimed to further support the industry. For example,

this report on proposed legislation to designate tea as a specialty crop in Hawaii

describes how lawmakers sought to establish standards for labeling and marketing locally produced tea.

The goal of such legislation is to distinguish fully Hawaii-grown tea from blends that incorporate leaves from other regions, thereby protecting both producers and consumers.

For full details, see

this text of the Hawaii bill outlining regulations for marketing and labeling tea products
,
which explains the intended framework for the industry.

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