Loose-leaf tea is packaged against light, air and moisture, which fade its flavor and aroma in weeks. The common choice is a foil-lined kraft stand-up pouch with a zip, which blocks light, recloses and costs little. A metal tin looks like a gift and keeps tea best but costs three times as much; a glass jar shows the leaves off but lets light in; and pyramid sachets in a box sell to people who won't use loose tea. The label lists every tea and herb in the blend in order by weight, with the net weight and your name and address. In the example below, a Duluth tea blender prices four options: 44 cents to $1.54 a package.
The short version
- Pack tea against light, air and moisture.
- Foil-lined kraft pouches with a zip: the cheapest good choice.
- Tins keep tea best and sell as gifts.
- Glass jars let light in; keep them for quick sellers.
- Sachets in a box suit people who won't use loose tea.
- List every tea and herb by weight on the label.
- TaroStack puts the pouch in each blend's cost. More below.
The options
| Option | Keeps out light | Recloses | Best for |
|---|---|---|---|
| Foil-lined kraft pouch with zip | Yes | Yes | Markets, online |
| Tin with lid | Yes | Yes | Gifts, shops |
| Glass jar with cork | No | Yes | Quick sellers, display |
| Box of 15 pyramid sachets | Yes, in the box | No | Tea-bag customers |
Pouches go out with a small desiccant only in humid climates; most blends don't need one. Whether tea counts as a cottage food is in can you sell tea from home.
The label
A packaged tea's label lists its ingredients by common name in order by weight (21 CFR 101.4) and the name and place of business (21 CFR 101.5), with the net weight. Blends with an allergen, such as almond pieces or soy lecithin in a flavoring, declare it (21 U.S.C. 343(w)). Herbal blends describe what's in them, not what they treat. This is general information, not legal advice.
An example: four options for a tea blender
North Shore Tea Co., the made-up tea blender in Duluth, Minnesota, sells about 150 two-ounce packages a week, mostly at holiday markets and online:
| Option | Parts | Per package | 150 a week |
|---|---|---|---|
| Foil-lined kraft pouch with zip | Pouch 38¢, label | $0.44 | $65.79 |
| Tin with lid | Tin $1.20, label | $1.28 | $191.25 |
| Glass jar with cork | Jar $1.10, label | $1.18 | $177.60 |
| Box of 15 pyramid sachets | 15 sachets, box, label | $1.54 | $230.85 |
Pouches carry the market and online orders; tins go into the holiday gift sets, where the tin does the selling. The sachet box costs the most and takes the longest to fill, so it's kept to two blends. The business year is in tea business plan, and the license in tea business license.
Get the calculator
Download the tea packaging calculator. Two sheets: components, each part of each option with its pack price, units, how many a package uses and waste; and compare, each option's cost per package and per week at your volume, with notes. It's an ordinary Excel file with no macros, and it works in Google Sheets, LibreOffice and Numbers.
Where this stops working
A cost sheet doesn't know that the pouch supplier raised its price, or which tin a blend went into. When a lot of chamomile is recalled, the packages it went into have to be found.
How TaroStack does it
TaroStack keeps each batch's lot, the packaging in its cost, and where every case went.
Each batch a lot. Each batch of tea records the ingredient lots it used, gets its own lot and dates, and lot labels print for the packages.
Packaging in the recipe. The pouches and tins are items in each blend's recipe, so every batch uses them up at the price you paid, and the count of what's left stays current.
Where it went. Each customer's order records the lots it got, so one recall report shows every customer a batch reached.
| The job | Notebook | In TaroStack |
|---|---|---|
| Which batch is in a package | Written on it | The lot on its label |
| Pouches and tins left | Counted when you run out | Used by every batch |
| Which shops got a batch | Invoices | One recall report |
Lots, batches, recipes and true cost are on every plan, from $49 a month. The first 30 days are free, with no credit card. If you'd like a hand setting up, ask, and we'll do it with you.