Two-thirds of Top Economists Predict Weak Economies in 2023 | Tea News Year in Review

HEAR THE HEADLINES – The New Year Brings Predictions of a Global Recession | Two-thirds of the world’s top economists predict economic weakness globally in 2023, according to the World Economic Forum, meeting this week in Davos, Switzerland. | Argentina Celebrates its Tea Centennial | Toronto Tea Festival Returns

| NEWSMAKER – Dan Bolton, Founding Editor/Publisher Tea Biz Blog | Podcast

| FEATURE INTRO – This year marks the 10th anniversary of the Tea Biz Blog and the 100th episode of the Tea Biz Podcast. Listeners in 117 countries have downloaded at least one of the 36,474 streams since 2021. The podcast is most popular in these countries in this order: The United States, India, Canada, Great Britain, Australia, Germany, The Netherlands, Japan, France, and Ireland, with Bangladesh, Sweden, China, Kenya, and Sri Lanka making up the top 15.

Tea Biz Podcast Year in Review – In 2022, all the most frequently downloaded episodes aired during the year's first six months. No wonder: COVID surged in January. Changing consumer behavior led Coca-Cola to discontinue its Honest Tea brand. Logistics were in disarray globally due to lockdowns in China. In February, Russia invaded Ukraine leading to sanctions and the closure of Black Sea ports realigning the tea supply chain. Tea exports from Sri Lanka sharply declined as tea plants were starved of fertilizer amid economic turmoil that led the country’s prime minister to abandon his post and the country’s president to resign. Nepal exports plummeted, and Kenyan tea prices were flat. China experienced a merciless heat wave while Assam flooded. Headlines described restaurants clawing back toward normal against the headwinds of inflation and labor shortages.

There was good news as well.

Tea consumption globally continued to expand. Japan tea exports set a new record, and a Shizuoka hand-rolled tea brought a record price at auction. Researchers presenting at the Tea and Human Health Symposium revealed compelling new science-based benefits that may lead to the inclusion of tea in US dietary recommendations. The world’s largest tea company named a woman as CEO and rebranded as Lipton Teas and Infusions. The International Specialty Tea Association announced innovative tea evaluation protocols. India’s Tea Research Association revised its best practices to enhance sustainability. India realigned the priorities of its tea board from regulation to promotion, and Kenya implemented progressive policies legislated in the Tea Act of 2020. The Mombasa Tea Auction transitioned to digital trading. Brazil held its first national celebration of tea culture. In May, on International Tea Day, the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization said the tea industry could transform the agrifood sector globally.

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