Tea Industry Unveils Custom Typology in Cool Farm Platform

13th Nov '25 - UKTIA

Collaborative Launch Marks a Milestone for Carbon Calculation and Sustainability Progress

[London, UK] – [November 13, 2025] — The global tea industry is proud to announce the launch of a dedicated tea typology within the Cool Farm Platform’s Perennial Pathway, a significant step forward in supporting the sector’s climate goals and improving the accuracy of its carbon measurement tools.

The Cool Farm Platform is a globally recognised, science-based sustainability calculator designed to help farmers, agronomists, and supply chain stakeholders measure and manage the environmental impact of agricultural practices. Developed through collaboration between academia, industry, and NGOs, the tool enables users to quantify greenhouse gas emissions, water use, biodiversity, and other key sustainability metrics, providing actionable insights to drive climate-smart farming and regenerative agriculture.

This milestone for the Cool Farm Platform was achieved through the partnership of the Cool Farm Alliance, Cranfield University, and in-kind contributions from LIPTON Teas and Infusions in the form of critical datasets and agronomic expertise, all supported by a committed consortium of leading tea sector organisations who co-funded the project. The consortium includes Ahmad Tea, Bettys and Taylors of Harrogate Limited, Camellia Plc, Finlays, George Williamson & Co. Ltd., LIPTON Teas and Infusions, Mother Parker’s Tea & Coffee, Rainforest Alliance, Reginald Ames, Solidaridad Eastern and Central Africa, Suntory, Tata Consumer Products, Tea and Herbal Solutions Ltd., and Twinings, led by the Tea and Herbal Association of Canada and the United Kingdom Tea & Infusions Association. Working together, the Consortium contributed vital expertise and on-the-ground insights to ensure the typology is both scientifically robust and practical for tea producers worldwide.

The tea typology marks the first time tea-specific agronomic data has been fully integrated into the widely used Cool Farm Platform, enabling producers and supply chain actors to more precisely assess greenhouse gas emissions from tea cultivation. This directly addresses the growing need for credible, crop-specific tools to support carbon reporting, regenerative agriculture, and broader environmental targets. The success of this initiative reflects the Cool Farm Alliance’s guidance, scientific leadership, and technical expertise, paired with the tea industry’s deep knowledge of production systems.

“This typology represents a significant milestone for our industry,” said Shabnam Weber, President, Tea and Herbal Association of Canada. “We now have a tool tailored to the realities of tea production that supports accurate carbon calculation, transparency, and progress toward sustainability commitments. Working with the Cool Farm Alliance has been essential in making this possible,” added Sharon Hall, Chief Executive United Kingdom Tea & Infusions Association.

The development process - from concept to implementation - was shaped by meaningful industry engagement to ensure the model’s robustness across diverse geographies and farming systems. The result is a tool that is both scientifically credible and grounded in the lived experience of tea producers.

Work is already underway within the consortium to harmonise data collection and develop a unified training approach, with further enhancements to be announced in due course.

With the tea typology now live in the Cool Farm Platform, tea stakeholders can begin using it to:

• Accurately measure emissions from tea farming systems
• Model the impact of agricultural practices and land use
• Track progress toward net-zero targets and other climate commitments
• Report consistently within sustainability frameworks
• Reliably compare the impact of best agricultural practise on emissions reduction between different farms and locations

This launch marks a major step forward in the tea sector’s journey toward transparent, data-driven environmental performance.

 

 

CONTACT

Dr Sharon Hall
United Kingdom Tea & Infusions Association
sharon@ukteainfusions.co.uk
+44 7903 399074

Shabnam Weber
Tea and Herbal Association of Canada
sweber@tea.ca
(416) 510-8647 ext. 1