Mariage Frères
Lacks transparency. Publishes some details, but doesn't show its workers are paid and treated fairly.
Last researched 3 November 2026 · 5 sources
Paris tea house selling over 1,000 teas.
There's no proof the people who grow its tea earn more than the legal minimum, which in India and Sri Lanka is well below a living wage.
Know something we've missed? Send evidence. Represent Mariage Frères? Send a right of reply.
Compare Mariage Frères with another brand
Why it's graded Lacks transparency
- Not met: Meets 1 of 5 Good requirements.
- Holds the grade back: It doesn't show that workers are paid a living wage, and isn't certified as working towards one. On Track needs at least one of these.
- It isn't Harm on record, because there's no serious confirmed problem on its record.
- Lacks transparency is still a poor grade: in supply chains like this, workers who can't be seen to be treated fairly are usually underpaid or unprotected.
Good requirements 1 of 5
- Not met: Pays a living wage, or holds a strong fair-pay certificationLiving wage: no evidence
- Not met: Respects worker rightsSome of its tea is grown in countries such as India and China, where unions are heavily restricted, and it has no full supply chain audit.
- Not met: Supply chain independently audited or certified, or at least 80% made in countries with strong labour standards
- Met: No child or forced labour findings or links
- Not met: Names the factories or farms that make its products, or is fully certified by a scheme that holds and audits that list
Red flags 2
- Red flag: No evidence it pays a living wage
- Red flag: Made partly in countries with poor worker rights, without a full independent audit of its supply chain
Stars it would earn as Good
None yet. Stars only show on Good companies. About stars
Estimates for its products
Our rules applied to one kind of product at a time, using Mariage Frères'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.
- A product carrying the Fairtrade mark: Good
Holding one? Scan its barcode for an estimate that uses its care label or ingredients.
Where its tea is grown
Mariage Frères names some of the countries its tea comes from: China, Colombia, India, Japan, Sri Lanka, Malawi, Taiwan and South Africa. The rest is shown as where tea is usually grown.
| Country | Worker rights | Legal minimum wage | Forced labour risk |
|---|---|---|---|
| India | No guarantee of rights | Well below a living wage | High |
| Sri Lanka | Systematic violations | Well below a living wage | Moderate |
| KenyaUsual for the industry | Systematic violations | Well below a living wage | Moderate |
| China | No guarantee of rights | Below a living wage | Moderate |
| Malawi | Strong protections | Far below a living wage | Moderate |
| Colombia | No guarantee of rights | Well below a living wage | Moderate |
| Japan | Strong protections | Close to a living wage | Low |
| Taiwan | Strong protections | Close to a living wage | Low |
| South Africa | Regular violations | Below a living wage | Low |
| IndonesiaUsual for the industry | No guarantee of rights | Well below a living wage | Moderate |
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). (partly offset by certification or direct sourcing) Source
- Direct trade (self-reported)
Research notes Mariage Frères says it buys directly from tea gardens, often family-run, lets growers set the price of their harvests and commits to the health, safety and dignity of garden workers. It names no estates and publishes no supplier code, audits or modern slavery statement, and its range carries no Fairtrade or Rainforest Alliance certification; its own Jardin Premier label is not a labour standard. Its catalogue names teas from China, India, Japan, Sri Lanka, Taiwan, Malawi, Colombia and South Africa, among others, without shares.
What independent sources say
| Source | Result | Details |
|---|---|---|
| Fairtrade (incl. FLOCERT and Fairtrade ANZ) | Not listed | Mariage Frères teas are not Fairtrade certified; its commitments page names no fair trade certification. View |
| Australian Modern Slavery Register | Not listed | No modern slavery statement from Mariage Frères is on the Australian register. View |
| Business & Human Rights Resource Centre | Not listed | No labour rights allegations against Mariage Frères are recorded. View |
Sources and actions
Sources 5
Show all 5 sources
- Mariage Frères tea (La Belle Miette) · search the archive · Australian retailer stocking 59 Mariage Frères teas
- Store locator (La Belle Miette) · search the archive · Physical kiosks at QVB Sydney, Chadstone Melbourne and Canberra Centre
- Mariage Frères (Wikipedia) · search the archive · Founded 1854 in Paris; 1,000+ teas; 30+ points of sale in France, UK, Germany, Japan; resellers in 60+ countries
Published by Mariage Frères or its owner
- Our vision / commitments (Mariage Frères) · search the archive · Buys directly from gardens; growers set harvest prices; commitment to dignified conditions; own Jardin Premier label; no independent audit
- Tea family catalogue (Mariage Frères) · search the archive · Tea origins named: China, Japan, Malawi, Colombia, Darjeeling and Ceylon (India, Sri Lanka), Formosa (Taiwan), South Africa; no shares
Company details
- Headquarters
- France
- Last researched
- 3 November 2026
- Cite this page
- Labour Lens, "Is Mariage Frères ethical? Labour rating", https://www.labourlens.net/brand/mariage-freres, last researched 3 November 2026, accessed [date].
- Method
- Researched with AI assistance against published rules. How we check · What Lacks transparency means
Better-graded tea
Something missing or wrong?
Grades are opinions based on the evidence listed here. Send us evidence, or a right of reply if you represent Mariage Frères.