"Shen" > wrote in message
ups.com...
> On Sep 17, 2:11 am, "Melinda" > wrote:
>> > wrote in message
>>
>> oups.com...
>>
>>
>>
>> > On Sep 16, 3:32 am, Tea Sunrise > wrote:
>> >> Since a lot of the tea we drink comes from China and Indonesia, are
>> >> you ever worried that the tea leaves were sprayed with pesticides such
>> >> as DDT or other harmful chemicals? I'd hate to think that I could
>> >> be drinking a cup full of toxins or pesticides along with my EGCG.
>>
>> >> Is the correct move to switch to organic teas? Does anyone really
>> >> know if tea bushes are completely safe for consumption?
>>
>> >> Any input is highly appreciated. thanks.
>>
>> > I completely agree with you. I recently read a newspaper article
>> > about a woman who became ill due to drinking green tea which was
>> > contaminated with DDT (she drink the same tea for a couple of years -
>> > a cheap Chinese green tea). While I agree that "going organic" is no
>> > guarantee of avoiding toxins, I do think that going organic can help
>> > to reduce the chance of your tea being contaminated. I recently asked
>> > Upton Tea about how they ensure that their teas are organic - they
>> > told me that they do test most of the organic teas from time to time
>> > to make sure everything is ok. I also read that in 2000 the EU
>> > introduced new standards for tea. The number of restricted chemicals
>> > jumped from 7 to 134. From what I understand, these standards actually
>> > require testing of the end product as opposed to merely making sure no
>> > pesticides are used, etc. According to this China Daily article the
>> > result of the new EU regulations was that in 2001 tea exports from
>> > China to the EU dropped by 37%. (http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/english/
>> > doc/2004-04/13/content_322923.htm) (Sorry, not trying to pick on
>> > Chinese teas.) As a result I have tried ordering some teas from the
>> > EU. Specifically I ordered some teas from Jing Tea in the UK. (http://
>> > jingtea.com/). The only problem is expense.
>>
>> > Another tea shop that actually tests every tea they sell is a German
>> > tea company (Tea Gschwender) which has a shop in Chicago that you can
>> > order from. I just tried something from there as well. They seem to
>> > be slow in stocking new Chinese greens and oolongs. (http://
>> >www.teagschwendner.com/)
>>
>> > I have to admit I'm still trying to figure out exactly what the US and
>> > other organic certifications really mean. I do find the concept of
>> > actually testing the tea easier to understand!
>>
>> > Good luck in you search for toxin-free tea. I'm doing the same.
>>
>> This brings up something I've been meaning to ask the group...if I wanted
>> to
>> take a sample of tea from my cupboard and get it analyzed for pesticides
>> etc., how would I go aobut doing that? I imagine a lab, but what kind,
>> how
>> would I find one, and would they do such a thing for a member of the
>> general
>> public?
>>
>> Melinda
>
> University of California, Davis - well-known for their agricultural
> additive studies.
> Not expensive, at all.
> Shen
>

Thank-you Shen. If it really isn't expensive this would be a really
interesting experiment for us to try (or me).

Melinda