Convo: Jenny Tse on the Environmental and Social Impacts of Tea
In this episode of Flanigan’s Eco-Logic, Ted speaks with Jenny Tse, founder and owner of Sipping Streams Tea Company, which has the distinction of operating the only geothermal-powered tea farm in the world. Jenny is also the best-selling author of The Essence is Tea: The Transformational Journey of a Tea Connoisseur, and the host of the Essence of Tea podcast.
Her extensive knowledge, expertise and experience has made her a sought-after speaker and trainer for the specialty tea industry. Sipping Streams’ custom tea infusions have won 1st, 2nd, and 3rd at the North American Tea Championships and 2nd at the Global Tea Championships, along with earning Jenny a 1st prize for the Top Tea Infusionist at the 2011 World Tea Expo. Sipping Streams also has been featured in Fresh Cup Magazine, Edible Alaska, and NPR.
Jenny and Ted discuss her background, born in Hong Kong and raised in Fairbanks, Alaska, leaving only for five years to attend Boise State University in Idaho to study education and health. She shares how Alaska has shaped her and that tea was medium to help her with her self identity.
Her company began as a vision in 2004 when Jenny was making a career pivot from teaching high school and noticed the way that tea was able to bring different people together. Jenny’s passion for community, sustainability, and quality have allowed the Sipping Streams Tea Company to specialize in high-quality organic loose leaf tea, tea education, and running a specialty tea shop. Every blend is handcrafted and curated to be unique and fresh, and sourced directly from all over the world. Sipping Streams emphasizes the importance of sustainability through packaging, and especially with their non-GMO compostable pyramid tea sachets. In 2021, Sipping Streams Tea Company started the first ever tea farm in Alaska, and the only geothermal powered tea farm in the world. Jenny highlights the environmental and social impacts of tea.
