Vegan Loose Leaf Tea

Vegan tea is tea that is free from animal products or by-products and is produced cruelty-free.

All Rare Teas are vegan-friendly as long as they are served without animal milk, cream or honey.

If you're looking for a gift for a vegan, you can't go wrong with any of our delicious loose leaf teas and herbs.

Most teas, such as black tea, green tea, white tea, and herbal teas, are vegan because they are made only from plant-based ingredients - Camellia sinensis (the tea plant) or various herbs and flowers. However, certain tea blends or flavoured teas from other companies might contain non-vegan ingredients like honey or milk powder.

All of our English Breakfast teas are vegan.

Rare Tea's Golden Lily Milk Oolong is vegan, but you do need to be wary of some milk oolong teas available from other shops. It is not uncommon to find a milk oolong tea that has had milk powder or flavourings added to the tea to imitate the milky characteristics of a true milk oolong tea.

Milk oolong should not contain milk. The name "milk oolong" refers to the rare tea varietal that is renowned for its creamy flavour and milky aromas.

Our vegan teas do not compromise on taste. We only source the best loose leaf tea, grown free from chemical pesticides and herbicides and are committed to using only natural ingredients. This means no additives or chemical flavourings and certainly no animal products.

Since most teas are free from animal products, and therefore vegan, we cannot assume that just because a tea is labeled "vegan" it is automatically "eco-friendly". This assumed association can be considered greenwashing; misleading consumers to believe a product is more environmentally friendly than it is.

Many teas labeled as "vegan" in supermarkets come in tea bags - a waste of precious natural resources. There is no such thing as an eco-friendly tea bag.

To find out more about what we believe makes Rare Tea the most sustainable tea, you can read about why Rare Tea is different here or discover our #teachange campaign.

All of our herbal teas are suitable for vegans. If you are looking for a naturally sweet herbal infusion that doesn't require the addition of any sweeteners such as honey, something like our naturally sweet and delicious Wild Rooibos or South African Honeybush are great choices for vegans.

For vegans who would like a 'milky' cup of tea, we would recommend oat milk as a substitute for cow's milk. We find oat milk usually compliments the rich and malty notes in black tea better than almond or soya milk - although it is often down to personal taste!

We do also offer a huge range of black teas that are best without milk. These loose leaf black teas make great options for a vegan looking for a tea to drink without milk.

For matcha lattes, we would still recommend oat milk although our earthy and nutty Toasted Matcha also goes well with almond or hazelnut non-dairy milk options.