The end of tea time?  Attacks in the Red Sea threaten Britain’s favorite drink

The end of tea time? Attacks in the Red Sea threaten Britain’s favorite drink


Shipping problems in the Red Sea led to delays in tea deliveries, but British retailers assured consumers that any shortages would be one-offs.




For a country of drinkers you morning and evening, even the mere thought of a shortage of basic necessities can cause a nervous sigh.

So quite a few people may have been alarmed when posters in some Sainsbury’s supermarkets warned customers that supply problems had affected the availability of black tea “across the country”, while attacks Houthis THE commercial ships in the Red Sea caused shipping delays.

Yorkshire Tea and Tetley Tea, two of the most famous tea companies in the world Great Britainsaid in statements that they were monitoring the situation to ensure they could maintain supplies of black tea, but that orders were being filled.

“This is a critical period that requires our continued attention,” Tetley said in a statement. The company said it has implemented measures in recent months to mitigate any supply disruptions due to transportation issues.

Tom Holder, a spokesman for the British Retail Consortium, which represents more than 200 retailers in Britain, said the attacks in the Red Sea had caused some delays but that he did not expect them to last long. “It’s a small detail,” he said, adding that he expects companies to adjust their orders to account for increased shipping times. He said the shortage was likely exacerbated by people rushing to buy tea, much like the toilet paper shortage at the start of the coronavirus pandemic in 2020.

Retailers assured customers that stores had plenty of stock at the time. Sharon Hall, chief executive of the UK Tea and Infusions Association, which represents tea companies selling into the country, said they had “good supplies of tea”.

However, the idea that the tea break was in danger caused an uproar.

“The English were ‘genuinely disturbed’ by the prospect of tea shortages,” read one headline The daily mail. ‘Keep calm,’ shoppers shout, as a major supermarket warns of tea shortages,” read another headline. The sun.

According to the UK Tea and Infusions Association, Brits drink around 100 million cups of tea a day. According to Statista, a market research provider, the majority of tea imports into Britain from countries outside the European Union come from sub-Saharan Africa, followed by Asia and Oceania.

Companies across several sectors, including Ikea and British clothing company Next, have flagged the possibility of delays caused by attacks by the Iran-backed Houthi militia on commercial ships crossing the Red Sea.

The attacks have left shipping companies with a difficult choice: circle around Africa, adding two or three weeks to the journey, or continue through the Suez Canal, which handles about 12% of global trade, via Sea Red , and deal with the risk of being attacked, as well as additional insurance premiums.

Eirann Carney, 23, a shop assistant from London who was stocking up for her workplace on Wednesday, said tea, for her, is “like a polite addiction”. She hadn’t heard of a possible shortage, she said, and on the shelves in front of her were a relatively large assortment of tea boxes.

What if there really was a tea shortage? “It would be a scandal in my office,” she said. “I honestly don’t think people would come in.”

Tea has long been linked to British identity and trade. The drink arrived in Britain in the mid-16th century after Dutch traders began importing it from China to Europe. Expensive to buy at the time, it became a fashionable drink among wealthy Britons, eventually spreading more widely in the country’s bars and then onto supermarket shelves.

According to a recent study, people in Britain currently drink slightly more coffee than tea, but tea is still considered an essential part of the country’s culture. How the drink should be prepared has also recently sparked a transatlantic controversy, after an American chemistry professor suggested adding a pinch of salt when preparing the cup. (The American embassy in London, ironically, called it an “unthinkable notion.”)

Source: Terra

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