Breakfast tea in a cafe (Photo/Adobe Stock)
Tea lovers can be such home bodies. However, out-of-home tea markets are expected to grow in the near future.
In blizzard conditions coffee drinkers think nothing of braving the cold for a coffee run. On a cold day you will find tea drinkers in front of the fire enjoying a cup of their favorite brew precisely prepared, in a familiar mug with just a dash of milk and sweetener.
A survey conducted in England last year reveals 46 percent of people don’t believe the quality of tea is better in cafés than at home. The findings show that 29 percent of consumers prefer the taste of tea when it’s made at home rather than in a café. Findings are similar in the U.S.
Half of American consumers drink tea daily, but when visiting a restaurant most order iced even when the roads are icy.
In the U.K. the top reasons to visit a café are to relax and enjoy the surroundings (52 percent), to catch up with friends (51 percent). Coffee consumers visit a café to drink coffee they can’t make at home (37 percent) but only 15 percent say the same for tea, according to Beyond the Brew, a report financed by Brita Professional.
Specialty tea may prove the secret to improving tea sales out of home, according to Allegra World Tea Coffee Portal. Researchers examined tea preferences in 2018, noting that “Specialty teas that tap into current premiumization and wellness trends are providing a significant boost to out-of-home tea sales, with matcha, kombucha and other functional teas at the forefront, according to Allegra research manager Bradley Journeaux.
Growth Markets
During the next five years globally, the out-of-home (OOH) tea market will expand an estimated 10.4 percent compound annual growth rate (CAGR) according to HTF Market Research. Global sales are expected to climb to $39.3 billion in 2025 with the U.S. market estimated at $17.8 billion of that total.
“Tea is found on the menus of more than 90 percent of midscale restaurants in the U.S. and more than 87 percent of menus in fast casual, casual, and fine dining restaurants,” reports market research firm Packaged Facts. “More than 88 percent of national and regional chains offer some variety of tea on their menus and more than 85 percent of independent restaurants do so, as well.”
Tea out-of-home (Source: Packaged Facts)
“American-style restaurants accounted for more than a fifth of total menu incidences for tea, no other type of restaurant had a share in double digits,” according to Package Fact’s Beverage Market Outlook, 2018.
Restaurants in the southern region of the U.S. had the highest level of menu penetration by tea, at 90 percent followed by the Midwest at 86.5 percent, according to Packaged Facts.
The trend is sustained, rising from 81.8 percent penetration in 2007 to a high of 87.5 percent in 2012. Menu penetration at all restaurants was 86.8 percent in 2017.
Cafes have more offerings, tea-to-go options have increased, and workplaces are now equipped with tea brewing machines and single-serve options.
Asia Pacific is currently the most lucrative region by a substantial margin. By the end of 2025, the Asia Pacific OOH tea market is estimated to generate $29.7 billion, accounting for nearly three quarters of the global demand.
Currently 33 percent of OOH tea is black, but green tea is anticipated to grow at a faster rate during the forecast period. This is mainly because of health benefits of the green tea such as useful for weight loss, high metabolism rate, rich in anti-oxidants, and good for body aeration, according to HTF Market Research.
The Middle East and Africa will trail Asia and the U.S. in OOH growth.
Sources: World Coffee Portal, Brita Professional, Packaged Facts,HTF Market Research
