At Genuine Tea, we pride ourselves on leading the Third Wave Tea movement in Toronto. In the western world, tea has long been considered a commodity. It is traded in large containers, measured by the ton and bid on by major multi-national corporations in auction houses with a view to get the lowest price per kilo possible.

As a result, very little compensation is left for the farmers or the pickers. The auction house model also leaves room for very little transparency as the tea is sourced from multiple growers, blended and shipped out to be re-packaged and re-branded with no mention of the harvest date, region, elevation or even country.

The purpose of the Third Wave Tea movement is to close the gap between the tea in your cup and the people who have dedicated their lives to producing it. It is a shift in focus from convenience and quantity to freshness and quality. As more people join the third wave tea movement, tea makers around the world will be acknowledged, appreciated and fairly compensated for their craftsmanship.