How to find UK buyers for Indian tea

Who buys Indian tea in the UK?

Most Indian tea bought by the UK is bulk black tea that UK blenders and packers mix into their own blends. A smaller group of importers, specialist merchants and foodservice suppliers buys named teas such as Darjeeling, Assam and Nilgiri.

India was the UK's second-largest tea supplier in 2025, behind Kenya, with £46.53m and 13.18m kg of UK imports, or 15.6% of UK tea import value, according to HMRC trade statistics. The UK Tea & Infusions Association (UKTIA) says about 90% of the tea drunk in Britain is blends of up to 35 teas, and that blenders and buyers taste teas bought at auction when they arrive at the packing factory (UKTIA).

Smaller retailers and caterers usually buy from UK importers rather than take on customs, duty, import VAT and UK food law themselves, so importers are the buyers one estate can most easily reach.

Should you sell at auction or go direct to UK buyers?

Sell at auction if you make plain bulk tea for blending, because UK blenders already buy tea at auction (UKTIA). Go direct when you can offer what a UK buyer cannot easily get at auction: consistent private grades, single-estate or flush-specific lots, certified organic tea, or tea packed for UK shelves.

The London Tea Auction held its last sale on 29 June 1998 (UKTIA). In India, tea sells through the Tea Board's e-auction centres, including Kolkata, Guwahati, Siliguri, Coonoor and Kochi, where one buyer registration covers every centre (Tea Board). Darjeeling is sold both at auction and by private sale (GOV.UK).

Selling direct means you find the buyer, ship a lot matching the approved sample, hold the licence and documents, and carry the payment risk. The reward is a buyer who can reorder from your estate each season.

How do you find UK tea importers from trade data?

Start with HMRC's free Find UK traders tool, which lists UK businesses that have imported each tea commodity code, then check each name on Companies House and the business's own website. Treat the result as a prospect list to research, not a list of buyers.

1. On Find UK traders, search the tea codes 0902 10 00, 0902 20 00, 0902 30 00 and 0902 40 00, then chapter 09.
2. On Companies House advanced search, filter active companies by SIC code 46370 (wholesale of coffee, tea, cocoa and spices) and 46170 (agents in the sale of food, beverages and tobacco).
3. Shortlist companies on both lists that sell origin teas on their websites.
4. Email the company's general address.

The general guide explains what Find UK traders can and cannot show, and the UK rules on business email.

Where can you meet UK tea buyers in person?

The main UK event for food and drink importers is IFE at ExCeL London in April 2027. No UK fair is tea-only, so arrive with a target list built from trade data and book meetings before you travel.

• IFE, Speciality & Fine Food Fair and HRC, 5 to 7 April 2027, ExCeL London (IFE); older September listings for the Speciality & Fine Food Fair are out of date. APEDA's tender for the IFE 2026 India Pavilion allocated 60 square metres to the Tea Board (APEDA); ask whether it will exhibit in 2027.
• Food & Drink Expo, 12 to 14 April 2027, NEC Birmingham.
• lunch!, 22 to 23 September 2027, ExCeL London, for foodservice and food-to-go buyers.
• Indusfood, 8 to 10 January 2027, Greater Noida, organised by the Trade Promotion Council of India with the Department of Commerce. UK prospects who would rather visit India can apply as buyers.

You can also contact the Commerce Wing of the High Commission of India in London through its website. Fair dates were checked on organisers' sites as of October 2026.

What will a UK tea buyer ask for before ordering?

A UK buyer will ask for samples that match the lot you will ship, residue results against GB limits, label artwork that meets UK rules, and proof of any Darjeeling, organic or ethical claim. Under UK food law the importer answers for the food it brings in, so it checks all this before ordering.

• Samples: pre-shipment samples of the actual lot, with a specification covering grade, orthodox or CTC manufacture, estate and season; samples sent to foreign buyers need no Tea Board licence.
• Residue results: accredited laboratory reports read against GB maximum residue levels (MRLs), which can differ from EU values (examples below).
• Labels: since 1 January 2024, prepacked tea sold in Great Britain must show a UK address for the food business operator, or for its UK importer if the operator is not in the UK; packs sold in Northern Ireland need a Northern Ireland or EU address (GOV.UK).
• Darjeeling: on the GB register as a protected geographical indication since 31 December 2020. The specification requires orthodox processing, plus the licence number issued under the Tea Board's Darjeeling certification trade mark scheme and the Darjeeling logo on every pack (GOV.UK).
• Organic: a GB certificate of inspection (document code C644) for each consignment. GB recognises India's organic regime only for unprocessed plant products and seeds grown in India, so confirm with your certifier that made tea qualifies, or that it is on GB's list of control bodies recognised for processed products, as of October 2026.
• Ethics: UKTIA makes alignment with a scheme such as the Ethical Tea Partnership, Rainforest Alliance or Fairtrade, or evidence of an equivalent approach, a condition of membership (UKTIA), and larger UK buyers publish modern slavery statements, so expect questions on estate labour.
• Plant health: made tea was not on the GB risk lists checked; confirm your code on the Plant Health Portal and see the phytosanitary certificate guide.

LOD is the limit of determination. Values are from the HSE GB MRL register as of October 2026; check again before each season.

How do the India-UK trade agreement and your terms affect price?

For most Indian tea, the UK-India Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA) changes nothing, because black tea and bulk green tea already entered the UK at 0% duty. Green tea in packs of 3 kg or less has a 2% MFN rate, but Indian-origin green tea could already enter at 0% under the UK's DCTS Standard Preferences, in force since 19 June 2023. From 15 July 2026 the importer can claim 0% under either scheme, as long as it holds the right proof of origin (UK Trade Tariff).

Tea is also zero-rated for UK VAT, so you compete on quality, consistency, freight and terms. For packed green tea, the importer claims CETA preference with your origin declaration from DGFT's Trade Connect, or keeps claiming DCTS; the trade agreement guide explains the claim. If you blend in tea from other countries, check the rules of origin first.

Agree the Incoterms 2020 rule in writing. FOB and CIF are for sea and inland waterway transport only, while DAP and DDP suit any mode. Under DDP you must clear the tea for UK import, which needs a UK-established customs agent; see DAP vs DDP for India-UK shipments.

As of October 2026, RBI rules require the full export value to be realised and repatriated within nine months of the date of shipment, or twelve months for exports invoiced or settled in rupees (RBI); see how to find UK buyers for Indian exports. Any credit you give a UK buyer must fit inside that window. ECGC export credit insurance can cover buyer insolvency or non-payment, with a credit limit approved on each buyer.

Which Indian export bodies help tea exporters?

The Tea Board of India matters most. It issues the business licence every commercial tea exporter needs, registers tea exporters for their RCMC, and issues Certificates of Origin for teas registered as geographical indications, such as Darjeeling, under paragraph 5 of the 2005 Control Order.

• Business licence: under the Tea (Distribution and Export) Control Order 2005, tea may be exported only under a business licence, valid for three years and able to become permanent after three years of exporting at least 100,000 kg a year. Apply and renew on the Tea Board's eGiCCS portal (Tea Board), and file monthly returns once licensed (Tea Board).
• RCMC: issued by the Tea Board for tea, valid for five years, and needed to claim Foreign Trade Policy benefits.
• Promotion support: the Tea Development & Promotion Scheme supported licensed exporters at international fairs and buyer-seller meets until 31 March 2026 (Tea Board); ask the Tea Board what applies this financial year.

These rules reflect the 2005 Control Order as of October 2026; confirm them with the Tea Board.

Why do tea deals with UK buyers fail, and what should you do first?

Tea deals with UK buyers usually fail on points you control: a lot that does not match its sample, a residue result over a GB limit, or packs the importer cannot legally sell. Fix those before you spend money on fairs.

• Residue results meet Indian or EU limits but not the GB MRL.
• Packs lack a UK address, or Darjeeling packs lack the certification trade mark licence number and logo.
• A DDP quote with no UK-established customs agent arranged.
• Credit terms beyond the RBI realisation period, or a lapsed Tea Board licence or IEC.

1. Choose your buyer: a blender buying bulk, or an importer buying named teas.
2. Hold a current Tea Board licence, IEC, RCMC from the Tea Board and a GST LUT (checklist).
3. Test a representative lot against GB MRLs and write a specification.
4. Build and qualify a prospect list from Find UK traders and Companies House.
5. Send samples with a clear Incoterm and payment terms.
6. Book meetings at IFE in April 2027, then ship a first order that matches the sample exactly.

Britbasket sources groceries, dry foods and other ranges from Indian producers for UK wholesalers, retailers and foodservice buyers. Goods move on Britbasket's registrations or on the producer's own, with the manufacturer as exporter of record holding the licences for its goods; for tea, that means the Tea Board licence. UK import declarations are lodged by UK-established partner companies. See how we work.

Questions buyers ask

Sources

1. UKTIA: Tea processing and blending
2. UKTIA: The London tea auction
3. UKTIA: About us
4. HMRC Overseas Trade Statistics API: UK tea imports by supplier country, 2025
5. HMRC Overseas Trade Statistics API: UK tea imports from India by commodity code, 2025
6. UK Trade Tariff API: commodity 0902100000, green tea in packs of 3 kg or less
7. HMRC Tariff Stop Press: India free trade agreement enters into force on 15 July 2026
8. Tea Board of India: Tea (Distribution and Export) Control Order 2005
9. Tea Board of India: Press note on the pan-India e-auction system
10. GOV.UK: Darjeeling, protected food name
11. HSE: GB maximum residue levels (MRL) register
12. GOV.UK: Food labelling, giving food information to consumers
13. uktradeinfo: How to use the Find UK traders tool
14. Reserve Bank of India: Foreign Exchange Management (Export and Import of Goods and Services) Regulations, 2026 (FEMA 23(R)/2026-RB, as amended on 22 September 2026)

Last reviewed 6 October 2026. Border, tariff and plant-health rules change. Check the sources above before relying on this guide for a specific consignment.