Eco-Product Review - Sweet Leaf Sweet Tea
Sarah Jowett
October 15, 2007
I love iced tea and it is primarily what I drink so when I saw some Sweet Leaf bottles on an end cap at the grocery store today, I paused to check them out because good processed, or mass produced, iced tea is hard to find and I always try what's out there. Then I saw that it uses organic cane sugar and that cinched it: Active Environmentalism market research!!!
Even though they have the USDA certified organic logo, their site has no information on their reasons for using organic cane sugar, or the company's environmental stance, just why they use sugar cane rather than corn syrup as a sweetener. Since they use organic sweetener, I am wondering why they don't use organic tea leaves also. Does anyone make or use organic tea leaves? It's something to consider!
Sweet Leaf has ten tea products and three lemonades with four of those being diet or unsweetened which don't use cane sugar. The Peach and Raspberry tea flavors say they use the cane sugar but not the ORGANIC cane sugar. All of the other sweetened teas and the three lemonades use the organic cane sugar. Oooh, they have a Lemon & Lime Tea I just might have to search out.....
When I check product availability, I check three to four ZIP codes that I know from memory to see if the products are located in a decent variety of locations around the US. I know they obviously sell it near me, hah, but I also check the ZIP code I had when I lived in Las Vegas; a ZIP code for Ames, Iowa where the majority of my dad's family lived (or Oshkosh, Wisconsin, where Jeremy was from and most of his family lives, whichever one comes out first, hah) and the only one on the East Coast I know, 10001, which is NYC. Fortunately, Sweet Leaf products are listed as being carried by stores in each of those locations but you can purchase them through their online store as well. Too bad the shipping is double the cost of a 4-pack of bottles!
Because I am diabetic, I tend to either drink an unsweetened variety or make it at home and add Equal, but for "sweet tea" this one is better than the typical bottled iced teas out there including Snapple, Arizona and even Lipton's. The cane sugar might indeed be the difference because it is smoother and doesn't have a bitter after-taste so common with commercially-brewed iced tea.
I would like to see more information on their site about why they chose organic cane sugar vs regular cane sugar, why the specific products listed above DON'T use it while their other products do, why they don't also use organic tea leaves (if possible) and corporate environmental information and philosophies but over all, it appears to be a company worth supporting and a tasty product with getting.
Sweet Leaf Tea web site.
Even though they have the USDA certified organic logo, their site has no information on their reasons for using organic cane sugar, or the company's environmental stance, just why they use sugar cane rather than corn syrup as a sweetener. Since they use organic sweetener, I am wondering why they don't use organic tea leaves also. Does anyone make or use organic tea leaves? It's something to consider!
Sweet Leaf has ten tea products and three lemonades with four of those being diet or unsweetened which don't use cane sugar. The Peach and Raspberry tea flavors say they use the cane sugar but not the ORGANIC cane sugar. All of the other sweetened teas and the three lemonades use the organic cane sugar. Oooh, they have a Lemon & Lime Tea I just might have to search out.....
When I check product availability, I check three to four ZIP codes that I know from memory to see if the products are located in a decent variety of locations around the US. I know they obviously sell it near me, hah, but I also check the ZIP code I had when I lived in Las Vegas; a ZIP code for Ames, Iowa where the majority of my dad's family lived (or Oshkosh, Wisconsin, where Jeremy was from and most of his family lives, whichever one comes out first, hah) and the only one on the East Coast I know, 10001, which is NYC. Fortunately, Sweet Leaf products are listed as being carried by stores in each of those locations but you can purchase them through their online store as well. Too bad the shipping is double the cost of a 4-pack of bottles!
Because I am diabetic, I tend to either drink an unsweetened variety or make it at home and add Equal, but for "sweet tea" this one is better than the typical bottled iced teas out there including Snapple, Arizona and even Lipton's. The cane sugar might indeed be the difference because it is smoother and doesn't have a bitter after-taste so common with commercially-brewed iced tea.
I would like to see more information on their site about why they chose organic cane sugar vs regular cane sugar, why the specific products listed above DON'T use it while their other products do, why they don't also use organic tea leaves (if possible) and corporate environmental information and philosophies but over all, it appears to be a company worth supporting and a tasty product with getting.
Sweet Leaf Tea web site.
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