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By Ron Romanik
The Teatulia tea company, based in Denver, is no ordinary tea company. Teatulia was the first to cultivate and market organic tea from Bangladesh, and sustainable business practices and packaging were a priority from the outset. The company founders sought an enterprise that would give the most people a living wage while protecting and strengthening the environment.
Not content with the social programs already in place, the Teatulia Cooperative has established revolutionary education, health, and cattle-lending programs for the more than 1,000 women working in the tea garden and the surrounding areas. All sales of Teatulia Teas contribute to this mission, helping to better the lives of Bangladeshi men, women, and children while rebuilding the local ecosystem. Teatulia’s mission is to sustain the land and the people while producing top-quality tea.
Through and through
Linda Appel Lipsius, cofounder and CEO of Teatulia, explains why the company moved away from category norms of tins and boxes. “The packaging is the most contact that consumers will have with your product,” Lipsius says. “It’s so important that the packaging has that sustainable message. We wanted the natural message, but we wanted the shelf pop too.”
Teatulia is named for the Tetulia region in Northern Bangladesh where the tea is grown. Teatulia organic teas reflect that pristine and delicate environment, and the founders felt packaging was a critical element to the overall product. Because of the company’s “more than organic” farming methods, it was imperative that they maintain their dedication to environmental consciousness throughout.
As such, Teatulia teas are packaged in unfinished, recycled paper, 100% compostable canisters. The individual tea varietals have cleanly designed labels with bright, eye-catching colors like fuchsia, lime green, and eggplant, which offset the light brown paper canister. The post-consumer recycled labels are printed with water-based inks, and the tea bags themselves are a compostable corn-based polymer from Japan.
In addition, the canisters were specifically designed to be mailed with no additional packaging. An address label composed of 30% post-consumer recycled content is placed directly on the canister, and postage is applied to the label. “The postal labels are a way to further practice what we preach,” Lipsius says.
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