About Tetley

Tetley is the tea most British kitchens have actually run on. The brothers Joseph and Edward Tetley began selling tea in Yorkshire in 1837, and in 1953 the firm introduced the tea bag to Britain, the single change that reshaped how the country makes tea more than any blend ever has. It followed up with the round bag in 1989 and the drawstring bag in 1997, small pieces of practical engineering aimed squarely at the everyday mug. Tetley is now part of Tata Consumer Products, the group behind Teapigs and Good Earth, which gives a humble Yorkshire blend the sourcing scale of one of the largest tea businesses in the world.

The range is breadth at a sensible price: the famous Original, decaf, Extra Strong, a well-regarded redbush, green and a wide herbal and fruit line. Sourcing sits inside the Tata programme with Rainforest Alliance certified black tea and a move to recyclable cartons and lower-plastic bags. For our shelf Tetley is the honest benchmark for value black tea. It will not out-texture a pyramid or out-muscle a Yorkshire-strength blend and does not pretend to, but it lands the same consistent, milk-friendly cup hundreds of times in a row, which is harder than the premium houses admit. The redbush punches well above its price and the Original is one of the most reliable everyday brews in British retail. It is the tea you buy when you want the cup uncomplicated, dependable and genuinely cheap without being nasty.

Key facts

• Founded Yorkshire 1837 Tea brothers Joseph and Edward Tetley start tea trading in Yorkshire, eventually building the family business into a national tea brand.
• Invented UK Tea Bag Tetley introduced the drawstring tea bag to UK retail, transforming British home brewing from loose-leaf-and-strainer to bag-in-mug convenience.
• Tata Consumer Products Tetley is now the flagship pure-tea brand of Tata Consumer Products, the world's second-largest tea company by volume.
• Rainforest Alliance Certified Every Tetley box across the catalogue is Rainforest Alliance certified, sourced from estates committed to forest preservation and fair labour.

Sustainability

Tetley is a pioneer in sustainable tea production, with Rainforest Alliance certification across the entire range, plastic-free plant-based PLA pyramid bags since 2018, FSC-certified recyclable cardboard cartons, and carbon-balanced shipping logistics. The brand also runs the Tetley Tea Folk Charitable Trust, channelling profits back into tea-grower communities across India and East Africa.

• Plastic Free Bags These tea bags are made from natural plant based fibres and contain zero plastic heat sealants making them fully compostable.
• Sustainable Sourcing One hundred percent of the tea is Rainforest Alliance Certified ensuring protection for local ecosystems and fair treatment for workers.
• Eco Packaging The outer cardboard box is fully recyclable and uses non toxic vegetable based inks for a circular waste system.
• Rainforest Alliance Certified Tetley sources tea from Rainforest Alliance certified estates committed to forest preservation, biodiversity protection and fair labour practices across East Africa and India.