Teatulia: Ahead of the Curve
November 2017— More and more tea companies in the tea industry are exploring sustainable practices in terms of both agriculture and people. Movement towards farm to cup, creative reimagining of invasive species, farmer friendly practices, and other initiatives all provide examples of the innovations people are making towards an environmentally and emotionally healthy industry.
New Research Shows Black Tea May Help with Weight Loss
October 7th, 2017— new research conducted UCLA has demonstrated that black tea may promote weight loss and other health benefits by changing bacteria in the gut. This study, published in the European Journal of Nutrition, expands on a previous study proving that consumption of both green and black teas results in less of the type of bacteria associated with obesity and more of the bacteria associated with lean body mass. According to the new black tea molecules are larger than those in green tea and stay in the intestine, enhancing the growth of beneficial bacteria and the formation of microbial metabolites involved in the regulation of energy metabolism.
How Tea Shaped the Modern World
September 7, 2017— Erika Rappaport, a professor of history at UC Santa Barbara, has argued in her new book, A Thirst for Empire: How Tea Shaped the Modern World, that the dispersal and relative popularity of tea throughout the world is deeply tied to British colonial domination and cultural appropriation. Through marketing endeavors, some more successful than others, the British attempted to control resources and cultures and succeeded in attributing tea to the national British character, ultimately shaping a new international community of tea consumers.
GTI Explores Partnership with China’s Leading Tea Research University
Aug. 11, 2017 — Three scholars from UC Davis’ Global Tea Initiative for the Study of Tea Culture and Science headed to a premier tea-growing region of China today to exchange research findings and cultivate stronger ties.
For All the Tea in China, Is Coffee Taking Over?
April 2017 — With Starbucks opening thousands more stores and spreading latte lore across China, will the country’s centuries-old tea-drinking tradition evaporate? That was a question mulled by UC Davis sociologist Xiaoling Shu as coffee sales began percolating in her native country, starting with the arrival of Starbucks, McCafé, KFC and other Western restaurant and café chains over the last three decades. Read about Shu’s research on the rise of coffee in China.
The Microbes That Could Bring Tea to California
April 2017 — UC Davis chemist Jacquelyn Gervay-Hague fell in love with tea 10 years ago in Taipei, while leading the chemistry department’s study-abroad program in Taiwan. Now, Gervay-Hague hopes to bring her passion home and cultivate tea as a commercial crop in California.. “Tea is exactly where the wine industry was 100 years ago in California.” Read about Gervay-Hague’s research on the “healthy” chemicals found in tea.
Colloquium Highlights Sensory Aspects of Tea
Feb. 6. 2017 - UC Davis College of Letters and Science News
Fully experiencing tea involves not just five senses but six, says tea master Wingchi Ip: “The sixth sense is the mind.” A tea tasting led by Ip kicked off the second annual colloquium of the UC Davis Global Tea Initiative for the Study of Tea Culture and Science.