Lipton

Lipton is a <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brand" title="Brand" >brand</a> of <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tea" title="Tea" >tea</a> and was also a supermarket chain in Scotland before it was sold off to <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Argyll_Foods" title="Argyll Foods" >Argyll Foods</a>, to allow the company to focus solely on tea. The company is named after its founder "<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thomas_Lipton" title="Thomas Lipton" >Thomas Lipton</a>".

<h2 >Product quality controversy</h2>

In November 2011, the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/General_Administration_of_Quality_Supervision,_Inspection_and_Quarantine" title="General Administration of Quality Supervision, Inspection and Quarantine" >General Administration of Quality Supervision, Inspection and Quarantine</a> of <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/China" title="China" >China</a> found high levels of <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Toxin" title="Toxin" >toxins</a> in one variety of Lipton tea. Unilever responded by clearing the shelves of all affected products.<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lipton#cite_note-Greenpeace-18" >[19]</a> In April 2012, the non-governmental organization <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Greenpeace" title="Greenpeace" >Greenpeace</a> raised questions to Lipton products once again, after two varieties of Lipton tea the group purchased in Beijing supermarkets failed safety tests, with the results allegedly failing to meet regulations as those enforced in the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/European_Union" title="European Union" >European Union</a>. Additionally, the group stated, "Some of the detected pesticides are also banned for use in tea production by the Chinese Ministry of Agriculture." Unilever China denied the findings, stating all Lipton products within the country were safe.<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lipton#cite_note-Greenpeace-18" >[19]</a>

Products target the mass market and are generally positioned in the middle of the price spectrum for tea.[<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Citation_needed" title="Wikipedia:Citation needed" >citation needed</a>]. Like most branded teas, Lipton teas are a <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blend" title="Blend" >blend</a> selected from many different plantations around the world, from well-known producing countries like India, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tea_production_in_Sri_Lanka" title="Tea production in Sri Lanka" >Sri Lanka</a>, Kenya, and China. Lipton Yellow Label is blended from as many as 20 different teas.<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lipton#cite_note-6" >[7]</a>

Apart from black leaf teas (with the long-standing Lipton Yellow Label brand), the company also markets a large range of other varieties, both in leaf tea as well as ready-to-drink format.<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lipton#cite_note-7" >[8]</a> These include green teas, black flavoured teas, (herbal) <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Infusion" title="Infusion" >infusions</a>, Lipton Linea (a 'slimming tea') in Europe and Lipton Milk Tea in various Asian markets. Apart from Lipton Ice Tea, none of their products are available for retail in the UK as only caterers are supplied.

In a number of markets, including Japan, Russia and Australia, the company is advertising the benefits of <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Theanine" title="Theanine" >theanine</a>, which supposedly have <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Psychoactive" title="Psychoactive" class="mw-redirect" >psychoactive</a> properties.<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lipton#cite_note-8" >[9]</a>

Lipton still owns plantations in East Africa ( <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kenya" title="Kenya" >Kenya</a> (Kericho) and <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tanzania" title="Tanzania" >Tanzania</a> (Mufindi) ) In May 2007, Unilever became the first company to commit to sourcing all its tea in a sustainable manner.<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lipton#cite_note-9" >[10]</a> Working with the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rainforest_Alliance" title="Rainforest Alliance" >Rainforest Alliance</a>, an international environmental <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/NGO" title="NGO" class="mw-redirect" >NGO</a>, Lipton and its parent company, Unilever, announced all Lipton Yellow Label tea bags sold in Western Europe would be certified by 2010 and all Lipton tea bags sold globally by 2015.<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lipton#cite_note-10" >[11]</a> Lipton's own tea estates were among the first to be certified.<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lipton#cite_note-11" >[12]</a><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lipton#cite_note-12" >[13]</a> Product bearing the Rainforest Alliance seal appeared on Western European markets in 2008 and started appearing in North America in 2009.<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lipton#cite_note-13" >[14]</a><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lipton#cite_note-14" >[15]</a>

On 6 May 2009, Lipton received a Corporate Green Globe Award for its work with the Rainforest Alliance.<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lipton#cite_note-15" >[16]</a>