UN Sponsors Tea Conference

OTTAWA--The United Nations (UN) sponsored a conference to boost consumption of tea due to its health benefits. Delegates from more than 50 nations met on Sept. 28 to discuss a report that black tea may help prevent cancer and heart disease just as well as green tea. The report, funded by large tea-producing countries such as Sri Lanka, India and Kenya and tea-drinking countries such as the United States, Canada and Great Britain, suggested that the health benefits of both teas are comparable.

Scientists believe that the antioxidants in teas are the key factor in their cancer-preventing properties. Antioxidants also give tea the ability to prevent certain auto-immune diseases and heart disease.

"The scientific community can now agree that the health benefits of green and black tea are comparable and specifically when we are talking about the anti-oxidant rule," said Danielle O'Rourke, president of Tea Council Canada in Toronto.

Stepping up tea consumption is a difficult task, but in the U.S., iced tea is enjoying a wave of popularity by tying into the soft-drink market. It is especially popular, researchers said, in the Southern U.S. Typically, black tea is more commonly consumed in Western countries than green tea, which is primarily favored by countries in the Far East.

According to the conference attendees, tea products must contain anywhere from 80 to 100 percent pure tea to be eligible for an official label indicating health benefits. The U.S. and Britain, both seeing a rise in specialty tea sales, suggested a lower percentage necessary for the label. Tea-producing nations, on the other hand, suggested a higher percentage should be required.

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