I already said that I was going to dig a little deeper into topics around supply chain this month, as part of my self care! For me, self care is deeply linked to feeling like I am living my values. Supply chain is one of the spots where I really get to do that.
.
.
We spent ALOT of time learning about our suppliers and sampling new ingredients from all over the world. It's a big part of the work we are lucky to do. I am constantly inspired by brands like: @diasporaco and @drizzle_honey and @uncommoncacao and @betterbasicsmilling and @notsovanilla.shop who are doing really cool work across their supply chains.
.
.
One of the things I have been struggling with a lot is naming our products as they emerge. If you remember way back to the days when we first launched the Sarjesa brand, our flavours were named after the natural landscape around us as an ode to our Canadian roots. They were called things like: Mountain Mist; Forest Floor; Dappled Sunlight.
.
.
Then people started complaining that these names didn't easily identify the flavours of each blend. For example, I remember clearly the day I got a message saying: "just call it freaking earl grey... I keep buying the wrong one." 😂
.
.
So, we listened to our customers and just started sticking with more traditional names. However, I want to take a little bit of time to talk about why some of these names are problematic.
.
.
Why do we have a tea named after a British earl when tea doesn't even come from England anyway? The answer appears to stem from, you guessed it, colonialism.
.
.
What is erased by naming in this way are both the oppressive sourcing practices that have dominated the tea industry for years AND the amazing stories and innovative agricultural practices of the small farms and growers that feed the world.
.
.
So, how do you think we should proceed with naming our teas so they are recognizable but also acknowledging the history?
.
