Qi Teas
Good. Shows the people who make its products are paid and treated fairly.
Last researched 2 November 2026 · 7 sources
UK brand selling organic green, white and herbal teas.
Qi Teas gets most of its tea from China and says it buys directly from farmers.
Also worth knowing
Its tea is Fairtrade certified, which comes with a minimum price for farmers and audits for child and forced labour.
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Why it's graded Good
- Met: Meets all 5 Good requirements.
- Met: No red flags.
| Star | Awarded for | Status |
|---|---|---|
| Pays above a living wage | Not earned | |
| Gives workers a real voice | Not earned | |
| Open supply chain | 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: strong fair-pay scheme (Fairtrade)
- Met: Respects worker rights
- 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 listFully certified by Fairtrade, which holds and audits the list of farms. Qi Teas doesn't publish its own.
Red flags 0
None found.
Accreditations 2
Estimates for its products
Our rules applied to one kind of product at a time, using Qi Teas'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 Qi Teas 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
Qi Teas is fully certified by Fairtrade, which holds and audits its list of farms. That covers only part of its range. The rest is shown as where tea is usually grown.
| Country | Share | Worker rights | Legal minimum wage | Forced labour risk |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| China | 75% | No guarantee of rights | Below a living wage | Moderate |
| IndiaUsual for the industry | 9% | No guarantee of rights | Well below a living wage | High |
| KenyaUsual for the industry | 8% | Systematic violations | Well below a living wage | Moderate |
| Sri LankaUsual for the industry | 6% | Systematic violations | Well below a living wage | Moderate |
| MalawiUsual for the industry | 1% | Strong protections | Far below a living wage | Moderate |
| IndonesiaUsual for the industry | 1% | No guarantee of rights | Well below a living wage | Moderate |
Evidence
What we found
- Direct trade (self-reported)
Research notes Qi Teas' green, white and flavoured teas are certified organic by Ecocert and sold as Fairtrade. The brand says they are grown by small farmers in ten mountain communities around Xitou in China's Yellow Mountains and processed at a facility owned by the farmers' co-op. Original owner Herbal Health Ltd has been in liquidation since 2022; the UK website is now run by distributor Pravera Ltd, and who now holds the brand's Fairtrade licence is not published. It does not publish the prices it pays, and China tightly restricts independent unions.
What independent sources say
| Source | Result | Details |
|---|---|---|
| Fairtrade (incl. FLOCERT and Fairtrade ANZ) | Certified | Qi teas sold at Woolworths are labelled Fairtrade certified; the brand won a 2013 Australian Fairtrade product award. View |
Sources and actions
Sources 7
Show all 7 sources
- Shop Ethical: Qi Teas distributor · search the archive · Distributed in Australia by Universal Village; certified Fairtrade and organic.
- Companies House: Herbal Health Limited (03366290) · search the archive · Herbal Health Limited, tea wholesaler incorporated 1997, in creditors' voluntary liquidation since March 2022
- Pravera: Qi Teas at Pravera · search the archive · Pravera took on UK distribution of Qi Teas in January 2024; teas bought directly from Fairtrade farmers in southern China
- Woolworths: Qi Wellness Tea · search the archive · Listed at Woolworths; certified organic and Fairtrade; China green tea; made in China
- Australian Food News: Qi Tea to launch 'zero calorie' chai tea · search the archive · 2015: tea bought directly from a small cooperative of Fairtrade farmers in Xitou Village, China, whose association owns the packing facility.
- Food & Drink Business: Fairtrade gong for Qi Tea · search the archive · Qi Organic Detox Green Tea named best Fairtrade product in Australia at the 2013 awards.
Published by Qi Teas or its owner
- Qi Teas: About us · search the archive · Teas grown around Xitou in China's Yellow Mountains with ten mountain communities; certified organic by Ecocert; co-op-owned processing facility
Company details
- Headquarters
- United Kingdom
- Last researched
- 2 November 2026
- Cite this page
- Labour Lens, "Is Qi Teas ethical? Labour rating", https://www.labourlens.net/brand/qi-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 Qi Teas.