Nerada Tea
Lacks transparency. Publishes some details, but doesn't show its workers are paid and treated fairly.
Last researched 3 November 2026 · 7 sources
Brisbane company blending and packing black and herbal teas.
We couldn't confirm where it gets the rest of its tea, and most tea is grown in countries such as India and Kenya, where the legal minimum is well below a living wage.
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Graded higher than Nerada Tea, selling the same kinds of things.
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Why it's graded Lacks transparency
- Not met: Meets 2 of 5 Good requirements.
- Holds the grade back: It has 2 red flags: no evidence of a living wage and unaudited production in high-risk countries. Two or more red flags means a poor grade.
- 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 2 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 India, China and Indonesia, 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
- 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 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 Nerada 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.
- 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
From Nerada Tea's own disclosure: it runs its own factories and says where its tea comes from. Its list covers only part of its range. The rest is shown as where tea is usually grown.
| Country | Worker rights | Legal minimum wage | Forced labour risk |
|---|---|---|---|
| Australia | Strong protections | About a living wage | Low |
| IndiaUsual for the industry | No guarantee of rights | Well below a living wage | High |
| KenyaUsual for the industry | Systematic violations | Well below a living wage | Moderate |
| Sri LankaUsual for the industry | Systematic violations | Well below a living wage | Moderate |
| ChinaUsual for the industry | No guarantee of rights | Below a living wage | Moderate |
| MalawiUsual for the industry | Strong protections | Far below a living wage | Moderate |
| 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).
- Owns or runs its own production
Research notes Nerada blends and packs its teas at its own Brisbane factory. Its Rainforest Alliance certified Atherton Tablelands estate stopped harvesting in 2023, so its black tea now combines remaining Australian stock with imported tea from Rainforest Alliance certified growers in countries it does not name. Rainforest Alliance, Fairtrade and organic tea make up only part of its sales, and it publishes no supplier list, modern slavery statement or wage information for the farms that grow its tea.
What independent sources say
| Source | Result | Details |
|---|---|---|
| Fairtrade (incl. FLOCERT and Fairtrade ANZ) | Unclear | Several Nerada Organics teas are Fairtrade certified, but Fairtrade tea is only a fraction of its sales. View |
| Australian Modern Slavery Register | Not listed | No modern slavery statement for Nerada Tea Pty Ltd was found on the Australian register. View |
| Business & Human Rights Resource Centre | Not listed | No labour allegations involving Nerada were identified in news or NGO reporting. View |
| News reporting and NGO investigations | Listed | Its Atherton Tablelands tea estate stopped harvesting in 2023 and went into hibernation, with nine estate staff made redundant. View |
Sources and actions
Sources 7
Show all 7 sources
- Good Shopping Guide (ethical.org.au): Nerada Tea · search the archive · Owned by JA Russell & Co (Malaysia); Fairtrade and Rainforest Alliance tea a fraction of sales; rated B- (updated July 2026).
- Queensland Country Life: Nerada pauses tea estate · search the archive · May 2023: nine permanent estate staff made redundant; Australian black tea stock for a year or more.
Published by Nerada Tea or its owner
- Nerada Tea Estates Goes Into Hibernation · search the archive · Estate and factory paused after the June 2023 harvest; Brisbane company continues to blend, pack and distribute.
- Nerada: Introducing Our New English Breakfast Tea Range · search the archive · Blend of Atherton Tablelands tea and imported black tea from Rainforest Alliance growers; no countries given; packed in Queensland.
- Nerada: Social Responsibility · search the archive · Says it sources the majority of its ingredients through initiatives such as Rainforest Alliance; no origins or worker programmes named.
- Nerada: Our mission · search the archive · Sources from unnamed high-altitude regions; operations based in Brisbane; several organic teas Fairtrade certified.
- Nerada Tea proudly Rainforest Alliance Certified · search the archive · Its Queensland plantation was Rainforest Alliance certified in 2018.
Company details
- Headquarters
- Australia
- Last researched
- 3 November 2026
- Cite this page
- Labour Lens, "Is Nerada Tea ethical? Labour rating", https://www.labourlens.net/brand/nerada, last researched 3 November 2026, accessed [date].
- Method
- Researched with AI assistance against published rules. How we check · What Lacks transparency 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 Nerada Tea.