Americans drink tea on a typical day
The Tea Association of the U.S.A. reported this daily reach in its 2022 fact sheet, using 2021 data.
Source: Tea Association of the U.S.A., 2022 ↗Reference page · Last updated October 5, 2026
Tea statistics
worth citing.
A source-led snapshot of U.S. tea drinking and the global supply chain. Built for writers, curious drinkers, and anyone who wants the number behind the cup.
See the stats ↓gallons of tea were consumed in the U.S.
The same 2022 Tea Association fact sheet reports more than 3.9 billion gallons consumed in 2021.
Source: Tea Association of the U.S.A., 2022 ↗global tea industry value in 2023
FAO described the tea industry as worth more than $50 billion in 2023.
Source: Food and Agriculture Organization, May 2025 ↗of the world’s tea is produced by smallholders
FAO highlighted the role of smallholders, including women and young people, across global tea production.
Source: Food and Agriculture Organization, May 2025 ↗U.S. tea supply comes from imports
USDA says the United States does not commercially grow tea at scale, so imports supply virtually all U.S. needs.
Source: USDA Economic Research Service, accessed October 2026 ↗What the numbers say
Tea reaches deep, from the cupboard to the grower.
Tea has a big everyday footprint in the United States, but its supply story reaches far beyond it. USDA notes that imports supply virtually all U.S. tea needs. That makes sourcing, growing conditions, and the people behind the leaf part of the bigger picture, not background detail.
The global side is just as real. FAO says smallholders produce more than 60 percent of the world’s tea. Behind a familiar cup sits a broad network of growers, processors, packers, importers, and shops, each carrying the work forward.
Methodology & sources
Good data needs a paper trail.
Tea Association of the U.S.A., Tea Fact Sheet, 2022: U.S. daily tea drinkers and annual volume, reporting 2021 figures. Read the fact sheet ↗
Food and Agriculture Organization, May 21, 2025: global industry value for 2023 and the smallholder share of world tea production. Read the FAO update ↗
USDA Economic Research Service, Food Availability documentation: U.S. supply context for tea and the limits of availability data. Read the USDA documentation ↗
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