Tea & teaware
Loose-leaf tea and matcha with an origin and test results you can check, and plastic-free ways to brew them.
What we look for
We look for
- Tested for what tea can carry: pesticide and heavy-metal results from a named lab, with lead in ppb, published or sent on request. This matters most for matcha, where you drink the whole leaf.
- Organic or a named origin: USDA or JAS Organic, and the region or garden the tea comes from.
- Loose leaf or plastic-free bags: no nylon, PET or PLA (“plant-based”) bags, and paper bags that say how they are sealed.
- Teaware you can name: plain borosilicate glass, stainless steel, or ceramic with a lead-free glaze statement or test. A Prop 65 lead warning on any listing needs an explanation.
- Freshness: a harvest season and year, or a best-by date, in packaging that keeps out light and air.
We avoid
- Plastic mesh tea bags and plastic infusers steeped in boiling water.
- Matcha with no origin or test results, especially very cheap “culinary” tins.
- Glazed cups and pots, often imported, that make no lead statement.
- “Toxin-free”, “purest” or “heavy-metal free” claims with no numbers behind them.
Read the research
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10 products · best rated first
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HarioHario ChaCha Kyusu “Zen” Glass Teapot
An all-glass teapot with a stainless-steel basket for loose leaf. Hario names the material and the country of each part, and lists no plastic. The details are Hario’s own, with no outside lead test. -
MatchafulMatchaful Houjicha (organic roasted green tea powder)
Roasted green tea powder from an organic Shizuoka farm group. Matchaful’s 2026 report shows less lead than its matchas (45 to 50 ppb, about 0.1 µg per 2 g serving) and no pesticides detected. The numbers are the maker’s; no outside test. USDA Organic (CCOF) -
MatchafulMatchaful Organic Kiwami Single Cultivar Matcha
Organic single-cultivar matcha from one named Shizuoka farm. Matchaful’s lab report shows lead at 68.8 ppb, about 0.14 µg per 2 g serving; an outside lab found 73 ppb in an earlier batch. Every tested matcha we found had lead. USDA Organic (CCOF) -
The Tao of TeaThe Tao of Tea Organic Genmaicha (Brown Rice Tea)
Everyday loose-leaf genmaicha (sencha with toasted rice) from a Portland tea house. USDA-organic in the registry, and an outside lab found no lead in a strong brew. One test, of the liquid; no harvest date. USDA Organic (QAI) -
CraftiCrafti Ceremonial Organic Matcha
Organic matcha from a young brand, about $0.80 a gram. USDA lists it as organic, but no lead figure or lab report is published, and the origin is “Uji/Kagoshima”. Every matcha with an outside test had lead; there are no numbers here. USDA Organic (Control Union; marketers and traders) -
Den’s TeaDen’s Tea Organic Sencha Yutaka-Midori
First-flush organic sencha from one named Kagoshima grower, sold by a California importer. The USDA database lists the product by name. Den’s publishes no heavy-metal or pesticide results for it. USDA Organic (CCOF) -
MatchafulMatchaful Hikari Single Origin Matcha
Single-farm matcha from Shizuoka with a 2026 lab report: lead 76 or 114 ppb by two methods, about 0.15 to 0.23 µg per 2 g serving. Not in the USDA organic listing. Best value in the 100 g bag; only sister Kiwami was tested outside. -
NumiNumi Organic Chinese Breakfast Black Tea (tea bags)
Plain organic Yunnan black tea in bags the maker says are manila hemp, not plastic. Organic status is verified, but the bag claim and the lab testing rest on Numi’s word, and Numi shows no test results. USDA Organic (QAI) -
Rishi Tea & BotanicalsRishi Simple Brew Loose Leaf Teapot
A borosilicate glass pot with a stainless-steel strainer lid. Rishi names the materials, but one check of its Amazon listing showed a Prop 65 lead warning that Rishi does not explain, and no country of origin is given. -
YIBOYIBO Matcha Whisk Set (bamboo chasen, ceramic bowl and tools)
A $21 seven-piece matcha kit with a ceramic bowl and bamboo whisk. YIBO says the glaze is lead-free but names no test, standard or country of origin, and says nothing about cadmium.