Twinings () is a British marketeer of

tea Tea is an aromatic beverage prepared by pouring hot or boiling water over cured or fresh leaves of '' Camellia sinensis'', an evergreen shrub native to East Asia which probably originated in the borderlands of south-western China and nor ...

and other beverages, including coffee, hot chocolate, and malt drinks, based in Andover,

Hampshire Hampshire (, ; abbreviated to Hants.) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South East England. It is bordered by Berkshire to the north, Surrey and West Sussex to the east, the Isle of Wight across the Solent to the south, ...

. The

brand A brand is a name, term, design, symbol or any other feature that distinguishes one seller's goods or service from those of other sellers. Brands are used in business, marketing, and advertising for recognition and, importantly, to create and ...

is owned by Associated British Foods. It holds the world's oldest continually used company logo and is London's longest-standing ratepayer, having occupied the same premises on the Strand since 1706. Twinings tea varieties include

black tea Black tea (also literally translated as red tea from various East Asian languages) is a type of tea that is more tea processing, oxidized than oolong, yellow tea, yellow, white tea, white, and green tea, green teas. Black tea is generally st ...

green tea Green tea is a type of tea made from the leaves and buds of the '' Camellia sinensis'' that have not undergone the withering and oxidation process that creates oolong teas and black teas. Green tea originated in China in the late 1st millenn ...

and

herbal tea Herbal teas, technically known as herbal infusions, and less commonly called tisanes (UK and US , US also ), are beverages made from the infusion or decoction of herbs, spices, or other plant material in hot water. Often herb tea, or the plai ...

s, along with fruit-based cold infusions.

History

Twinings was founded by Thomas Twining, of

Painswick Painswick is a town and civil parish in the Stroud District in Gloucestershire, England. Originally the town grew from the wool trade, but it is now best known for its parish church's Taxus baccata, yew trees and the local Painswick House, Pain ...

Gloucestershire Gloucestershire ( , ; abbreviated Glos.) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South West England. It is bordered by Herefordshire to the north-west, Worcestershire to the north, Warwickshire to the north-east, Oxfordshire ...

, England, who opened Britain's first known tea room, at No. 216

Strand, London The Strand (commonly referred to with a leading "The", but formally without) is a major street in the City of Westminster, Central London. The street, which is part of London's West End Theatre, West End theatreland, runs just over from Tra ...

, in 1706; it still operates today. The firm's logo, created in 1787, is the world's oldest in continuous use. Holder of a royal warrant, Twinings was acquired by Associated British Foods in 1964. The company is associated with

Earl Grey tea Earl Grey tea is a Tea blending and additives, tea blend which has been flavoured with Bergamot essential oil, oil of bergamot. The rind's fragrant oil is added to black tea to give Earl Grey its unique taste. However, many, if not most, Earl Gr ...

, a tea infused with bergamot, though it is unclear when this association began, and how important the company's involvement with the tea has been. Competitor Jacksons of Piccadilly – acquired by Twinings during the 1990s – is also associated with the bergamot blend. In April 2008, Twinings announced its decision to close its

Belfast Belfast (, , , ; from ) is the capital city and principal port of Northern Ireland, standing on the banks of the River Lagan and connected to the open sea through Belfast Lough and the North Channel (Great Britain and Ireland), North Channel ...

Nambarrie plant, a tea company in trade for over 140 years. Citing an "efficiency drive", Twinings moved most of its production to China and Poland in late 2011, while retaining its

Andover, Hampshire Andover ( ) is a town in the Test Valley district of Hampshire, England. The town is on the River Anton, a major tributary of the River Test, Test, and lies alongside the major A303 road, A303 trunk road at the eastern end of Salisbury Plain, ...

factory with a reduced workforce. In 2023, Twinings ceased production of

lapsang souchong Lapsang souchong (; ) or Zhengshan xiaozhong (, 'Proper Mountain Small Varietal') is a black tea consisting of leaves that are smoke-dried over a pinewood fire. This smoking is accomplished either as a cold smoke of the raw leaves as they are ...

, replacing it with a product called "Distinctively Smoky", widely considered to be inferior quality.

Lapsang souchong Lapsang souchong (; ) or Zhengshan xiaozhong (, 'Proper Mountain Small Varietal') is a black tea consisting of leaves that are smoke-dried over a pinewood fire. This smoking is accomplished either as a cold smoke of the raw leaves as they are ...

was one of the tea blends sold by Twinings since the 1700s and was regarded as the favourite drink of

Winston Churchill Sir Winston Leonard Spencer Churchill (30 November 1874 – 24 January 1965) was a British statesman, military officer, and writer who was Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1940 to 1945 (Winston Churchill in the Second World War, ...

. Twinings cited difficulty sourcing the blend along with rising market prices for the substitution.

Ethics

Twinings' ethical tea programme, Sourced with Care, aims to improve the quality of life in the communities from which it buys tea. The company is a founding member of the Ethical Tea Partnership, a not-for-profit membership organisation of tea-packing companies which undertake monitoring and improving conditions on tea estates in all major tea-growing regions. Twinings has an Ethical Code of Conduct and works with all its packaging and raw material suppliers to ensure decent working conditions in the supply chain. In August 2018, Twinings published a list of all its tea suppliers in India on its Sourced with Care website. This came after Traidcraft Exchange called on all the major UK tea brands to show the public which tea plantations they buy from and crack down on

modern slavery Contemporary slavery, also sometimes known as modern slavery or neo-slavery, refers to institutional slavery that continues to exist in the 21st century. Estimates of the number of enslaved people range from around 38 million to 49.6 million, d ...

in the supply chain. Traidcraft Exchange welcomed the move, their policy adviser, Fiona Gooch, saying that it would put "pressure on the other big tea brands ... to follow suit".

Notable members of the Twining family

* Thomas Twining (1675–1741), tea merchant, Twinings founder * Mary Twining (1726–1804), tea merchant, mother of Richard Twining * Thomas Twining (1735–1804), classical scholar * Richard Twining (1749–1824), tea merchant * William Twining (1790–1835), military physician * Elizabeth Twining (1805–1889),

botanical illustrator Botanical illustration is the art of depicting the form, color, and details of plant species. They are generally meant to be scientifically descriptive about subjects depicted and are often found printed alongside a botanical description in boo ...

* Louisa Twining (1820–1912), social reformer *

Edward Twining Edward Francis Twining, Baron Twining (29 June 1899 – 21 June 1967), known as Sir Edward Twining from 1949 to 1958, was a British diplomat, formerly Governor of North Borneo and List of colonial heads of Tanganyika, Governor of Tanganyika ...

(1899–1967), diplomat

References

External links

* * * * * {{British Royal Warrant holders 1706 establishments in England Andover, Hampshire Tea brands in the United Kingdom Companies based in Hampshire British royal warrant holders Associated British Foods brands Companies established in 1706 Twining family Strand, London

History

Ethics

Notable members of the Twining family

See also

References

External links