The Kent and Sussex Tea and Coffee Company was recently shocked to find that its pine needle tea sales had gone through the roof this year. The family-run hot drink supplier said that they were now having to buy the trendy tea from overseas to meet demands.
Richard Smith, partner at the tea business, said, “The demand came out of nowhere and has been astounding. We are processing over 300 pine needle tea orders a day.”
The Kent and Sussex Tea and Coffee Company is a tea and coffee importer, packer and wholesaler. Their business produces a range of more than 1,000 products, including loose leaf teas, tea bags and fresh roast coffee.
According to the company, its overall pine needle sales have increased by 7,000 percent since the "quack cure" went viral.
Kent and Sussex said it actually ran out of pine needle tea thanks to the “news” that it helps prevent Coronavirus, in addition to supply issues. “We have had people phoning up in states of distress and even tears [looking for the tea],” said Smith.
The demand has been prompted by a viral claim that Sumarin, a component of pine needle tea, prevents people from catching coronavirus. According to one Instagram post by U.S. company 3rdEyeOpener (which promotes “alternative medicine”), pine needle tea prevents blood clots, vascular problems and heart attacks, and “also inhibits inappropriate replication and modification of RNA and DNA.” This post has since been issued with a “False Information” warning by Instagram.
The concern is that vaccinated citizens “shed” Coronavirus and infect those around them. Pine needle tea, people claim, naturally prevents this. Scientists and health professionals are eager to quash the claims that pine needle tea is the only needle you will need during COVID-19 pandemic and argue that vaccine “shedding” is a bogus phenomenon.
Influencers and Pine Needle Tea
In the U.K., reality TV star Leanne Brown – wife of Wes Brown, the former Man United Defender – told The Sun that Brits should drink pine needle tea rather than get vaccinated.
Another influential conspiracy theorist promoting pine needle tea as an “alternative medicine” is Dr. Judy Mikovitis, whose recent book, Plague of Corruption, topped the Amazon bestseller list. In a YouTube video titled “Sumarin,” Dr. Mikovitis claimed that Suramin is the antidote to the "bioweapons and transmission” and that “You can obtain enough from pine needle tea [pine, spruce, cedar and fir].” Although this video was removed by YouTube, this false claim is still circling on conspiracy and alternative health websites.
Pine Needle Tea and the Fight Against COVD-19 Theories
Pine needle tea is not the only herbal remedy related to the Coronavirus that has gone viral. Other suggested treatments have included diets with alkaline foods and ingesting lemon drops and red onions. In response, doctors and health professionals are working hard to debunk these false and potentially life-threatening claims.
In fact, USA Today released a fact-check article debunking the theory that pine needle tea prevents infection. The article quotes Dr. Matthew Laurens, an infectious disease specialist at the University of Maryland School of Medicine: “As none of the current COVID-19 vaccines authorized for emergency use in the USA contain live SARS-CoV-2 virus, viral shedding is not an issue for these vaccines.”
To learn more about The Kent and Sussex Tea and Coffee Company, visit Tea-and-Coffee.com.