one tin costs €12. another costs €40. both are green, both say matcha and both promise to be very good.
so what are you actually paying for?
there is no single reason matcha becomes expensive. the final price is built from everything that happens before the powder reaches its tin, along with a few things that have very little to do with the tea itself.
growing matcha takes time and space
matcha begins as tea plants grown for tencha. before harvest, the plants are shaded to limit their exposure to sunlight.
shading helps shape the colour and flavour of the leaves, but it also requires materials, labour and careful timing. the method, duration and intensity can vary between farms.
where the plants grow matters too. fields on steep or difficult terrain can require more work than large, easily accessible fields. farming practices, fertiliser, pest management, the size of the farm and the amount it can produce all affect the cost.
tea is an agricultural product. it cannot be made entirely predictable just because it eventually arrives in a tidy little tin.
not every leaf is worth the same amount
the harvest makes a difference. young spring leaves are limited to a relatively short period, and matcha made from the first harvest often costs more than powder made from later growth.
the cultivar can also affect availability and yield. some cultivars are widely grown, while others exist in much smaller quantities or are more demanding to cultivate.
rarity can raise a price, but rarity and flavour are not the same thing. a rare cultivar can be fascinating and still not be the one you enjoy most.
the leaves still have a long way to go
after harvesting, the leaves need to be steamed, cooled and dried without being rolled. the resulting tencha is then sorted, with stems and veins removed, before it is prepared for milling.
milling matcha to a very fine, even texture is a specialised process. the equipment, time, skill and scale involved all affect the price.
then there is packing, cold storage, international transport, food-safety documentation, independent testing, import charges and packaging. none of these makes the flavour more luxurious, but they are part of getting matcha from a farm in japan to someone in the netherlands safely and in good condition.
sometimes you are paying for the route it took
matcha can pass through several exporters, wholesalers, distributors and retailers before reaching the customer. every business involved needs its own margin.
that route is not necessarily bad. specialists can provide valuable knowledge, blending, quality control and access to small producers.
it does, however, make a difference to the price.
at sumi, we work directly with the farms and manufacturers behind our matcha and order in small batches. it gives us clearer information about what we are buying and avoids adding layers that do not improve the product.
you can read more about how we source and choose our matcha.
and yes, branding costs money too
packaging, photography, design, fulfilment and running a small business all form part of the retail price. that is true for us as well as every other brand.
the problem begins when presentation replaces information.
an expensive tin should not be treated as proof of quality simply because it looks convincing. equally, a low price is not automatically a clever bargain. matcha that tastes dull or disappears completely in milk is not especially good value if you need twice as much of it.
words such as premium and ceremonial can also make a product sound more precise than it is. our explanation of why we don’t use ceremonial grade goes into that in more detail.
what is actually worth paying for?
we would look for:
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a flavour you genuinely enjoy
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clear origin and cultivar information
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a harvest suited to how you want to use it
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careful processing and milling
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sensible freshness and storage practices
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reliable food-safety information
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enough traceability to understand where it came from
the best value is not necessarily the cheapest matcha or the most expensive. it is the one that gives you the flavour and quality you wanted at a price that makes sense for you.
you can compare the flavour, origin and production details of our matchas in the sumi collection.