I will take advantage of having this blog to share some tea news stories I came across this week. Fear of Tea FOMO? I don’t know, but I will give this a try on a regular basis and see how it goes and if you guys like it.

I love to scroll through newsfeeds, tweets, articles on pocket, answers on quora…then pick things related to a topic and analyze it, read more and at the end lose myself in the most obscure topics such as the “Oldest Cave Paintings” for example. But here I am going to try something with tea. Tea isn’t only my favorite drink. It is Humanity’s favorite drink. Tea plays a crucial role in the economy of countries such as China, India, Kenya, Sri Lanka, Japan and Turkey for example. So they are a lot of potential global stories to be shared. I hope this weekly list is helpful and informative. In my opinion the 2 stories at the end are a bit of a stretch, but I couldn’t miss the anti-smog tea, it was a pearl!

This week’s headlines–Week of January 9th 2017, Calendar Week 2.

I tried to put them in order of preference 😊

• USA: Tea for you … and you … and you: How the boom in the brew can fuel your travel (Yay! Because millennials are the most likely tea drinkers with 87% choosing it. That’s according to the Tea Assn. of the USA but nice news anyway!)
• India: All over India, life slows down when it’s time to sip that customary cup of chai (Really nice article with gorgeous pictures of what tea-time looks like in different parts of India. Reminds me of my trip to South India last year!)

Tea Time in Kashmir (Photo: Sajad Rafiq)

• Europe: Not your granny’s tea set (Who’s not captivated by a modern design on a classic? Even though I will stick with the old fashion mason jar or the timeless Gaiwan)

Teapot designed by Helena Rohner

A little bit of crazy in a mad world tea headlines:

• China: ‘Anti-smog tea’ unhelpful: TCM expert (No kidding?! This one made it to the headlines of the Chinese state owned publications, almost smells like Onions😟)

I am not going to link it to Chinese websites because, well, it’s a bit ridiculous, but apparently some people came up with a formula to relieve people from the terrible Chinese smog. Results aren’t convincing…The Traditional Chinese Medicine expert says that:

 “What we eat or drink is digested and absorbed in our digestive system, while the PM2.5 particles enter our respiratory system through the nose. The two systems are independent,”

….sorry but it sounds quite scary.

• UK: Boy, eight, is left with horrific burns after a pot of tea fell off a table at a cafe and into his lap (Sad again, a good reminder to be vigilant when children are strolling around. Beware, link redirects to a tabloid website.)