The color and sweetness of Japanese tea can be adjusted as much as desired through the use of chemical fertilizers.

However— If color and umami are pursued excessively and large amounts of chemical fertilizers are used, the soil gradually becomes exhausted and hard, almost like concrete.

As the soil deteriorates, the tea plants themselves weaken. Weakened tea plants become more susceptible to insects, which ultimately leads to the need for even more esticides.

And there is one more fact we should not forget.
Tea leaves are never washed after harvest.They are processed exactly as they are.

Tea plants also have remarkably powerful roots.
These roots draw up nutrients from deep within the soil and send them directly into the leaves.

Matcha is unique among teas.
When you drink matcha, you consume the entire tea leaf.

In other words, whatever rests on the leaf—and whatever the leaf has absorbed—ultimately becomes part of what you drink.

So what is actually happening in the tea industry today?

There is another reality of tea—

one that is rarely spoken about openly.