Uji’s bittersweet but refreshing matcha has lengthy been an emblem of Kyoto’s tea tradition, and at Taihoan, a city-run tea home close to the UNESCO-listed Byodoin Temple, tea ceremony experiences showcasing Uji tea have develop into a serious attraction. Guests are guided by conventional etiquette reminiscent of getting ready and receiving tea, with the venue drawing greater than 20,000 customers prior to now fiscal yr, about 80% of them from abroad.

With international curiosity in matcha surging, the town plans to lift tea room charges from April. A bowl of “usucha” served throughout tea classes will improve from 1,000 yen to 1,500 yen, whereas a full tea ceremony expertise will rise from 2,400 yen to three,600 yen.

Sugimoto Takayuki, head of the economic tourism division in Uji Metropolis, stated Uji tea has gained international consideration in recent times, pushing market costs two to a few instances larger. The town goals to take care of service high quality and improve hospitality whereas adjusting costs to mirror rising prices.

The first issue behind the rise is the sharp rise in tencha costs. Based on agricultural cooperatives, public sale costs for tencha have quadrupled over the previous 5 years.

The consequences are additionally being felt throughout the town. A specialty Uji tea store that opened in June final yr was launched by Tobias Baer, a Swiss nationwide who skilled in tea in Japan. Whereas wholesale costs for matcha have climbed, Baer stated he can not move on the complete price to prospects, as he needs extra folks to get pleasure from high-quality tea.

Throughout reporting, a espresso store proprietor from the Caribbean visited the store looking for to include matcha into a brand new menu. The customer stated matcha is quickly gaining recognition worldwide and, though costly, high-quality merchandise command larger costs.

At the same time as international demand grows, the increase has introduced challenges. Uji’s determination to lift municipal tea room charges displays broader price pressures, with tencha costs up roughly fourfold in 5 years.

Exports of inexperienced tea, together with matcha, have additionally surged. From 2024 to 2025, export values almost doubled yr on yr to 72.1 billion yen, with matcha accounting for 84% of the overall.

On the similar time, conventional tea producers are going through difficulties. Circumstances of chapter, closure, or dissolution amongst tea companies have elevated, reaching 11 within the first half of 2025, already exceeding the ten recorded in 2024 and placing the yr on observe for a document excessive. Many smaller operators lack abroad gross sales channels, and home consumption has declined as youthful generations transfer away from Japanese tea. Demand linked to funeral companies has additionally decreased as ceremonies shift to smaller family-based codecs.

Producers are trying to modify from sencha to matcha manufacturing, however provide has struggled to maintain up with international demand. As extra farmers convert fields to matcha cultivation, output of different inexperienced teas has declined, driving up costs throughout the sector.

Retail costs are already rising. Procurement prices for bancha have elevated fivefold and for inexperienced tea threefold. A 600ml bottle of Ito En’s Oi Ocha inexperienced tea is about to rise by 21 yen from March shipments.

The shift displays variations in cultivation. Whereas sencha is grown in daylight, matcha makes use of the identical leaves however is cultivated beneath shade. With extra farmers changing to matcha manufacturing, provides of different teas are shrinking, resulting in broader worth will increase.

In response, Ito En is working to broaden tea fields nationwide and assist producers to safe uncooked supplies. Analysts say Japan’s tea business, as soon as reliant on home consumption, now faces the problem of adapting to speedy inhabitants decline and surging international demand.

Supply: YOMIURI