Daintree Tea
Good. Shows the people who make its products are paid and treated fairly.
Last researched 2 November 2026 · 6 sources
Family business growing black tea near Cape Tribulation, Queensland.
Daintree Tea gets its tea from Australia, where labour laws are strong and legal wages are about a living wage.
Also worth knowing
It runs its own factories and carries the Australian Made label.
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Why it's graded Good
- Met: Meets all 5 Good requirements.
- Met: No red flags.
- Met: Earns 3 stars for going above and beyond.
| Star | Awarded for | Status |
|---|---|---|
| Open supply chain | Earned | |
| Pays above a living wage | Not earned | |
| Gives workers a real voice | Not earned | |
| Finds and fixes problems, or invests in communities | Not earned |
3 stars for the first way it goes above and beyond, and one more for each further way, up to 6. About stars
Good requirements 5 of 5
- Met: Pays a living wage, or holds a strong fair-pay certificationLiving wage: presumed because legal wages in Australia are about a living wage, not checked at the company
- Met: Respects worker rights
- Met: Supply chain independently audited or certified, or at least 80% made in countries with strong labour standardsPresumed from where it's made, not audited
- Met: No child or forced labour findings or links
- Met: Names the factories or farms that make its products, or is fully certified by a scheme that holds and audits that listRuns its own factories
Red flags 0
None found.
Accreditations 1
Estimates for its products
Our rules applied to one kind of product at a time, using Daintree Tea's evidence and, where it has product lines, that line's countries. They're estimates: we don't know which factory made any single item.
Tea: Good, the same as Daintree Tea overall, because nothing we know differs between them.
Holding one? Scan its barcode for an estimate that uses its care label or ingredients.
Where its tea is grown
From Daintree Tea's own disclosure: it runs its own factories and says where its tea comes from.
| Country | Worker rights | Legal minimum wage | Forced labour risk |
|---|---|---|---|
| Australia | Strong protections | About a living wage | Low |
Evidence
What we found
- Risk across the industry, not a finding about this company: tea estate wages in Assam, Sri Lanka and Kenya are among the lowest of any export crop, often paid partly in kind (housing, rations).
- Owns or runs its own production
- Grows its crop on its own farms or estates
Research notes Daintree Tea is grown, processed and packed on the Nicholas family's own plantation in the Daintree, so the work is done in Australia under Australian workplace law. It is a small family-run farm and publishes no headcount, wage data or labour policies. It holds no fair trade, organic or ethical certification; its pesticide-free claim is self-stated.
What independent sources say
| Source | Result | Details |
|---|---|---|
| Baptist World Aid Ethical Fashion Report | Not covered | Baptist World Aid's company page lists Daintree Tea as a family-owned Australian company with no assessment. View |
| Fairtrade (incl. FLOCERT and Fairtrade ANZ) | Not listed | No Fairtrade certification is claimed by the brand. View |
| B Corp directory | Not listed | No B Corp certification is claimed by the brand. View |
| Business & Human Rights Resource Centre | Not listed | No labour allegations against Daintree Tea appear in news or NGO reporting. View |
Sources and actions
Sources 6
Show all 6 sources
- Baptist World Aid: Daintree Tea · search the archive · Family-owned private company run by the Nicholas family on the Cubbagudta Plantation since 1978; tea grown in North Queensland; no assessment.
- Wet Tropics Management Authority: tour guide field school · search the archive · 2019: Greg Nicholas described the farm, which his family established in 1978 and where they still grow, process and sell the tea.
- Tourism Port Douglas & Daintree: Daintree Tea · search the archive · Cubbagudta Plantation still owned and operated by the Nicholas family; tea grown, harvested, dried and packed on the plantation; unblended black tea.
- Queen Victoria Market: Daintree Tea · search the archive · Sold through Australian retailers.
Published by Daintree Tea or its owner
- Daintree Tea Co. - home page · search the archive · Established 1978; grown in the Daintree and processed on site within 24 hours of harvest; Australian grown and owned.
- Daintree Tea Co. - About · search the archive · Nicholas family set up the plantation in 1978 and still own and run it; all products grown on site; picked to packed in 24 hours.
Company details
- Headquarters
- Australia
- Last researched
- 2 November 2026
- Cite this page
- Labour Lens, "Is Daintree Tea ethical? Labour rating", https://www.labourlens.net/brand/daintree-tea, last researched 2 November 2026, accessed [date].
- Method
- Researched with AI assistance against published rules. How we check · What Good means
Something missing or wrong?
Grades are opinions based on the evidence listed here. Send us evidence, or a right of reply if you represent Daintree Tea.