The Situation
We are facing a climate and biodiversity emergency. Average global temperatures have increased exponentially since the 1970s with multiple severe implications for the planet and our future on it. Governments are starting to respond with increased regulation, and consumers are looking for brands that look to tackle these issues.
Tea comes from nature. It’s made from the leaves and buds of the camellia sinensis plant. The way we produce it has an impact on the natural world, and issues such as climate change have an impact on our producers and us. We are committed to minimising any negative impact and one day having a net positive impact on the planet.
Our Mission
JING™ was founded based on one mission, which remains as important today as it was at the beginning of our journey:
To deliver unforgettable tea drinking experiences whilst supporting and enabling tea producers and their environments to thrive
Better Tea for People & Planet
Our Mission
JING™ was founded based on one mission, which remains as important today as it was at the beginning of our journey:
To deliver unforgettable tea drinking experiences whilst supporting and enabling tea producers and their environments to thrive
Our Approach
We believe we can achieve both by selecting distinctive single garden teas and building long-lasting, personal relationships with the tea masters who produce them
We do this by ensuring that our teas are sourced with integrity and transparency, both when it comes to the people we source from and our impact on the planet.
We are a member of the Ethical Tea Partnership and commit to adhering to their Membership Golden Rules.
SINGLE GARDEN, SINGLE ORIGIN
We prioritise single garden teas not only because they deliver the most pure and distinctive flavour experiences, but also because they deliver complete transparency.
You'll find the garden name celebrated on every pack of our tea.
CHAMPIONING LOOSE LEAF
Loose leaf tea not only delivers the best drinking experience but uses less processing, packaging and reduces waste.
That’s why 100% of our teas are available as loose leaf and we give customers the tips and tools to enable the easy switch.
FAIR PRICE
We’re lucky to source teas from outstanding producers, crafting the highest quality teas and we pay the high prices they command.
As consumers enjoy and appreciate the benefits of quality single origin tea, the industry will change for the better, with greater returns and a better future for tea producers and their communities.
PRIORITISING ORGANIC
Tea grown without synthetic pesticides or herbicides minimise the exposure of land, wildlife, producers and tea drinkers to agrochemicals.
Our aim is for 80% of our teas to be made this way by the end of 2024.
PERSONAL RELATIONSHIPS
Not only do our personal relationships give us direct access to the best crop of each season, but by cutting out multiple middle men more money is going directly to producers and their communities.
It also allows us to troubleshoot with producers as environmental issues arise.
CARBON ACTION PLAN
Our teas are certified carbon neutral, and we are committed to Gold Standard projects relevant to the places and communities where we source our teas from.
We’ve calculated exactly where the greenhouse gases are produced throughout our tea supply chain, and have begun targeted actions to reduce and offset reduce these emissions. Up to 95% of the carbon footprint of our teas happens in production so we are working with producers to find and prioritise a switch to sustainable solutions.
SUPPORTING COMMUNITIES
We're a funding partner of the Ethical Tea Partnership's Plantation Community Empowerment Project in Assam, India.
Community forums, made up of 50% women and 30% youth are created to work in collaboration with estate management teams to address challenges facing the community
SUSTAINABLE PACKAGING PROMISE
We’re investing in biodegradable packaging options and take a full lifecycle approach to our packaging, with new alternative materials in trial.
Where we can, we’re already using plant based and biodegradable materials, including our whole leaf tea bag ranges.
Championing Loose Leaf And Sustainable Packaging
Create a rapid transition to sustainable/circular packaging solutions & champion loose leaf.
We’re reducing the resources that we use and working hard to move towards more circular and sustainable solutions.
Championing Loose Leaf and Sustainable Packaging
We’d love everyone to drink loose leaf tea – not only because it tastes better, but also because it needs less packaging & produces less waste. We’re on a mission to champion loose leaf to consumers and innovate away the practical barriers to its adoption in collaboration with our customers.
We want to minimise the environmental impact of our teabags, and all our packaging in general – all while best protecting the quality of our tea leaves. We want any packaging we use to be just as high quality and sustainable as the tea inside.
We want our packaging to be sourced sustainably, made from renewable materials (i.e. plastic free) and to be reusable or recyclable at the end of their life. We are continually looking for new circular and sustainable packaging innovations to trial to help us on our journey.
Championing Loose Leaf and Sustainable Packaging
We’re reducing the resources that we use and working hard to move towards more circular and sustainable solutions.
2024 Goals & Commitments:
Championing Loose Leaf And Sustainable Packaging: Goals And Commitments
We’re committed to:
1) Maintain 100% of range offered in loose leaf
2) Innovating & educating to enable increased adoption of loose leaf in hospitality and in home
3) Defining a sustainable resource use programme and associated goals by 2025
Prioritising Organic
Prioritising organic and regenerative farming techniques to minimise environmental impact and increase producer resilience.
A few years ago, we decided to source organic teas and herbals wherever possible. Sustainable practices such as organic and regenerative farming can reduce greenhouse gas emissions and make tea gardens more resilient to climate change. We have also noticed that they tend to go hand in hand with better tasting tea. Prioritising teas grown in this way also reduces the carbon emissions associated with our tea as 75% of carbon emissions in tea production are from chemical fertilizers.
Prioritising Organic
We take a dual stamp approach, meaning our teas are either Soil Association Certified Organic or JING stamp ‘Made Without Pesticides’.
For more information on our organic journey
Why Origin Matters Most
2024 Goals & Commitments:
We’re committed to:
1) Continue the roll out of both Soil Association Certified Organic and JING stamp “Made Without Pesticides”
2) 80% of our range to have one of these stamps by the end of 2024
Developing Our Roadmap To Net Zero
Developing and delivering our roadmap to Net Zero
To limit global warming to 1.5 degrees and address climate change, we all need to act now. At JING, our aim is to be a net zero business by 2040.
We’ve calculated exactly where the greenhouse gases are produced throughout our tea supply chain and begun targeted actions to reduce these emissions. As over 80% of the carbon footprint of our teas happens throughout our tea value chain we are prioritising working with producers and logistics suppliers to find and enable sustainable solutions.
To find out more about our Net Zero commitment and our roadmap to net zero
2024 Goals & Commitments:
We’re committed to:
1) Halving our GHG emissions per £M turnover by 2030 from our 2022 baseline, and to be net zero by 2040
Progress
For progress on our goals and commitments see the JING Sustainability Report and JING Sustainability score card.
Case studies and further information
