The healthier the planet, the better the tea.

Metropolitan Tea is dedicated to environmental and social sustainability. As a global business, we are aware of our impact on the world, and we work to implement initiatives to harmonize our profits with the health of the planet.

Flip through our ESG Report below to learn more.

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From crop to cup, we are concerned with the well-being of the people involved in every aspect of making a cup of tea – this starts with the farmers and their families, and continues down the chain to the health and safety of our employees, all the way to the satisfaction of the end consumer taking their first sip.

 

Solar Powered Facility

CARBON AVOIDANCE

     In 2011, we installed 2,600 solar panels on our roof. Annually, we

     generate 3x the amount of electricity used by our factory. This

     is enough to power 130 homes for a year.

In a typical year, our solar array avoids 1,200,000 pounds of CO2, 4,000 pounds of SO2 (sulfur dioxide) and 1,200 pounds of ozone-depleting NOx (Nitrogen oxides).

In other terms, this is annually equivalent to planting 10,000 trees, saving 45,000 gallons of gasoline, and 288,000 gallons of water.
 

Learn more more about our solar rooftop array.

 

INFRASTRUCTURE EFFICIENCY

CARBON REDUCTION
We incorporate many design features intended to reduce energy use generated by our facilities and procedures and cut down on carbon release.

 

Air Transfer & Lighting

Fans move air throughout the facility where required, cutting down on heating and cooling needs. Ultra-efficient lighting reduces electricity use.

 

Carton Upcycling

Recycled packing materials are used exclusively, and carton boxes are reused whenever possible.

 

Intentional Packing

Bulk teas are vacuum-packed in a square shape to maximize space in shipping cartons. When implemented, this maximizes shipping utility by 15%.

 

Wetland Preservation & Carbon Sequester Forest

CARBON OFFSETS

As wholesalers of agricultural products, we believe it is our responsibility to offset the carbon we generate each year. The goal is to further reduce our overall carbon footprint while biodiversity in sensitive lands in Ontario.

                                                                 

We planted and continue to maintain 15,000 trees as part of our commitment to the UN’s Billion Tree Program and the Government of Ontario's 50 Million Tree Program. 80 acres of historical wetland and an additional 80 acres of Carolinian Forest have been protected from development and provide habitats for numerous species as well.

While the effects of climate change continue to make headlines around the world, Metropolitan Tea is proud of the work we’ve done to help mitigate the environmental effects of our business.

 

 

Grown on Family Farms

   We work with family owned and operated tea and herb farming

   enterprises in more than 35 different countries around the world.

   Families retain the pride of ownership and attention to luxury tea.

 

 

100% Compostable Packaging

PLANT-BASED PYRAMID TEA BAGS | COMPOSTABLE TEA BAG ENVELOPES | COMPOSTABLE POUCHES

Our tea bag material is made from PLA derived from corn, sugar cane, and cassava.

PLA acts like plastic, but it is plant-based and 100% compostable. Compare this to traditional teabags which have nano plastics embedded in the material to allow the teabag paper to be heat sealed.

Learn more about all of our 100% compostable packaging solutions to decide which is best for your business.

 

Kosher, Vegan & Halal Certified

              

99% of our products are Kosher and Vegan certified. We undergo regular audits to ensure these certification statuses are maintained. A list of certified Halal products can be found on our ordering website.

 

Organic Certified

We are a certified organic handler and processor; we can provide organic certified products under COR – NOP – EU

  

FSSC 22000

We are certified GFSI through FSSC 22000. GFSI is the global platinum standard for food safety.

 

C-TPAT

C-TPAT is a program under the Department of Homeland Security of the USA which stands for Customs Trade Partners Against Terroism. We are Tier 2, meaning we have undergone multiple audits testing all our system.

 

USFDA Registered

    We are a registered food production facility under the United

    under the United States Food and Drug Agency.

 

 

CFIA Registered

We are a registered food production facility under the Canadian Food Inspection Agency.

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