Varieties of Specialty Teas and Their Sales Increasing Total Tea Sales in U.S. Forecast for 10 Billion dollar in 2010

摘要

The total number of products and annual demand for specialty tea products in the United States has reached record levels, according to the latest edition of the Tea Is "Hot" Report~(TM). The report states that 2003 sales levels of specialty tea sold in the United States reached nearly 1.1 billion dollar, constituting an increase of 15 percent over total retail volume sold in 2002. Total sales of all types of tea-conventional and specialty-products sold in the United States topped 5.1 billion dollar in 2003 with most of the growth being derived from the value-added specialty tea category. Specialty teas include high quality premium "tea," flavored teas, as well as herbal teas, like the increasingly popular yerba mate (Ilex paraguariensis A. St.-Hil., Aquifoliaceae), rooibos (Aspalathus linearis [Burm. f.] R. Dahlgren), and other herbal teas.