Tea Importation Act of 1897 was a United States public law forbidding the import of

tea Tea is an aromatic beverage prepared by pouring hot or boiling water over cured or fresh leaves of ''Camellia sinensis'', an evergreen shrub native to East Asia which probably originated in the borderlands of southwestern China and north ...

into the United States with excessive levels of fluoride, heavy metals,

oxalate Oxalate (IUPAC: ethanedioate) is an anion with the formula C2O42−. This dianion is colorless. It occurs naturally, including in some foods. It forms a variety of salts, for example sodium oxalate (Na2C2O4), and several esters such as dimethyl ...

, and pesticides. The Act of Congress established a uniform standard of purity and quality while attempting to achieve the optimal

health effects of tea Although health benefits have been assumed throughout the history of using ''Camellia sinensis'' as a common beverage, there is no high-quality evidence that consuming tea confers significant benefits other than possibly increasing alertness, an ...

and

phenolic content in tea The phenolic content in tea refers to the phenols and polyphenols, natural plant compounds which are found in tea. These chemical compounds affect the flavor and mouthfeel of tea. Polyphenols in tea include catechins, theaflavins, tannins, an ...

. The statute declared it unlawful to import into the United States "any merchandise as tea which is inferior in purity, quality, and fitness for consumption to the standards kept at customhouses..."21 U.S.C. §§ 301 et seq For nearly a century, Congress provided that no imported tea could enter the United States unless federal tea-tasters decided that it measured up to preselected standard samples. The law restricted the

International trade International trade is the exchange of capital, goods, and services across international borders or territories because there is a need or want of goods or services. (see: World economy) In most countries, such trade represents a significant ...

of camellia sinensis. The 1897 statute superseded the Spurious Tea Importation Act of 1883. The act was on the books for 99 years before its repeal in 1996. After repeal, the

Food and Drug Administration The United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA or US FDA) is a List of United States federal agencies, federal agency of the United States Department of Health and Human Services, Department of Health and Human Services. The FDA is respon ...

still regulates the quality of tea imported to the United States under the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act of 1938.

Provisions of the Act

The United States statute had twelve sections and authorized the

United States Secretary of the Treasury The United States secretary of the treasury is the head of the United States Department of the Treasury, and is the chief financial officer of the federal government of the United States. The secretary of the treasury serves as the principal a ...

to implement the law. As codified just before its repeal, the Act instructed the

Secretary of Health and Human Services The United States secretary of health and human services is the head of the United States Department of Health and Human Services, and serves as the principal advisor to the president of the United States on all health matters. The secretary is ...

each year "to appoint a board, to consist of seven members, each of whom shall be an expert in teas, and who shall prepare and submit to him standard samples of tea." In accordance with the board of experts' recommendations, the Secretary was instructed to "fix and establish uniform standards of purity, quality, and fitness for consumption of all kinds of teas imported unto the United States" and to deposit samples of these standards in the customhouses of various ports of entry. Tea importers were required to submit samples of their product for comparison with the standard samples kept at the customhouses. The imported samples were then tested "by a duly qualified examiner," who would test "the purity, quality, and fitness for consumption of the... mported tea samplesaccording to the usages and customs of the tea trade, including the testing of an

infusion Infusion is the process of extracting chemical compounds or flavors from plant material in a solvent such as water, oil or alcohol, by allowing the material to remain suspended in the solvent over time (a process often called steeping). An in ...

of the same in boiling water and, if necessary, chemical analysis."

Board of Tea Appeals

The Board of Tea Appeals was a

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...

federal agency under the jurisdiction of the Food and Drug Administration. From its establishment in 1897 until its abolishment in 1996, it adjudicated the claims of

importers whose products were denied entry into the United States by federal tea-tasters. The Board was authorized to permit delivery or order destruction or exportation of substandard teas.

Amendment and Repeal of 1897 Act

The Tea Importation Act of 1908 amended the 1897 public law permitting the import of tea siftings, tea sweepings, or tea waste for the extraction of

caffeine Caffeine is a central nervous system (CNS) stimulant of the methylxanthine class. It is mainly used recreationally as a cognitive enhancer, increasing alertness and attentional performance. Caffeine acts by blocking binding of adenosine to ...

or theine, and other

chemical products Products are the species formed from chemical reactions. During a chemical reaction, reactants are transformed into products after passing through a high energy transition state. This process results in the consumption of the reactants. It can be ...

. The 1897 Act was repealed with the United States 104th Congressional session enactment of the Federal Tea Tasters Repeal Act of 1996.

Sections of the act

The twelve sections of the original act: :''21 U.S.C. § 1'' ~ Prohibit the unlawful importation of substandard tea :''21 U.S.C. § 2'' ~ Establishment of a board of experts on tea :''21 U.S.C. § 3'' ~ Establishment of tea purity standards :''21 U.S.C. § 4'' ~ Bonds of exporters, examination of imported tea, and importation at ports without examiners :''21 U.S.C. § 5'' ~ Delivery permits, reexamination, retention of substandard tea :''21 U.S.C. § 6'' ~ Referral of disputes to Board of Tea Appeals to permit delivery, order destruction, or exportation of substandard tea :''21 U.S.C. § 7'' ~ Examiners and examination according to usage of trade :''21 U.S.C. § 8'' ~ Reexaminations including findings by examiner and assistance of experts :''21 U.S.C. § 9'' ~ Reimporting rejected tea and forfeitures for violation of provisions :''21 U.S.C. § 10'' ~ Issuance of regulations :''21 U.S.C. § 11'' ~ Tea on shipboard subject to former 1883 law :''21 U.S.C. § 12'' ~ Repeal of 1883 Act

References

Bibliography

* "A Brief History of Tea: The Rise and Fall of the Tea Importation Act" by Patricia JB DeWit

*''Federal Administrative Law'' by Gary Lawson

External links

* * * * * * {{cite web , url=https://www.nlm.nih.gov/hmd/teapot/board.html , title=Tempest in a Teapot: Tea & Politics & Health ~ Board of Tea Experts , date=August 13, 2004 , website=History of Medicine , publisher= United States National Library of Medicine, U.S. National Library of Medicine 1897 in law 1897 in American law 54th United States Congress United States federal health legislation Health policy in the United States 1897 in the United States Food and Drug Administration Tea industry