Bigelow Tea has officially confirmed that all its tea bag products are completely plastic-free, biodegradable, and compostable, addressing recent discussions surrounding microplastics research. The company produces over 2.2 billion tea bags annually across three manufacturing facilities in the United States, utilizing environmentally conscious processes.
Environmentally Friendly Manufacturing Process
Bigelow Tea employs an oxygen and peroxide cleaning method for tea bag fibers, ensuring they remain clean and neutral without any harmful residues. The company explicitly avoids using elemental chlorine in its processes, which helps prevent the formation of dioxin and other potentially harmful compounds. This commitment to clean manufacturing supports the company's plastic-free claims.
Composition of Bigelow Tea Bags
Non-Heat Seal Paper (Approximately 90% of Sales)
This primary tea bag material consists of wood pulp and abaca fiber, requiring no adhesives as it's machine-folded and sealed. These tea bags contain absolutely no plastic and are used in various count boxes ranging from 8 to 100 tea bags.
Heat Seal Paper (Approximately 10% of Sales)
For this category, Bigelow Tea uses wood pulp combined with plant-based starches derived from corn and sugarcane. These materials create the seal without any plastic components and are primarily used in 40-count boxes and larger packaging options.
Heat Seal Pyramid Paper (Approximately 0.2% of Sales)
The pyramid tea bags in Bigelow's Steep Café and Charleston Tea Garden lines utilize plant-based starches from corn and sugarcane exclusively. This specialized format maintains the company's plastic-free standard while offering a premium tea experience.
Addressing Microplastics Research Concerns
Recent studies from McGill University and Barcelona researchers have sparked conversations about plastic content in tea bags. However, Bigelow Tea clarifies that these studies examined materials containing petroleum-based components like nylon, PET, and polypropylene—none of which appear in Bigelow products.
The 2019 McGill University study specifically evaluated fully plastic tea bags made from nylon and PET, which differ fundamentally from Bigelow's plant-based materials. Similarly, the 2024 Barcelona research examined tea bag materials containing polypropylene, including heat-sealed cellulose with polypropylene components.
Bigelow Tea does not incorporate polypropylene, nylon, or PET in any of its tea bag products, maintaining its commitment to plastic-free materials. The company notes that the Barcelona study's methodology—steeping 300 empty tea bags in one liter of 95°C water while stirring at 750 RPM—doesn't reflect actual consumer tea-drinking practices.
Industry Context and Material Sourcing
For over 90 percent of its tea bags, Bigelow uses non-heat seal paper from the same global supplier as other leading tea brands. Most tea bag companies in the United States produce similar non-heat seal tea bags using wood pulp and abaca, creating industry-wide standards for plastic-free options.
The remaining tea bags utilize heat seal paper with plant-based starches from corn and sugarcane as sealants. Bigelow Tea transitioned to these plant-based sealants nearly a decade ago, recognizing the importance of moving away from any non-plastic-free alternatives. This proactive shift demonstrates the company's long-standing commitment to environmental responsibility.
