Twinings facts for kids

Quick facts for kids
Twinings

Twinings' shop on the Strand in central London opened as a tea room in 1706.
Owner	Associated British Foods
Country	United Kingdom
Introduced	1706; 319 years ago (1706)
Markets	Beverages

Twinings is a famous British company that sells tea and other drinks like coffee and hot chocolate. The company is based in Andover, England, and is owned by Associated British Foods.

Twinings has the world's oldest company logo that is still being used today. Its main shop in London has been in the same spot since 1706, making it the city's longest-paying business resident at one location. Twinings sells many kinds of tea, including black tea, green tea, and herbal teas.

History of Twinings

The First Tea Room

Twinings was started by a man named Thomas Twining. In 1706, he opened the first known tea room in Great Britain. It was located at No. 216 Strand, London, and you can still visit it today! The company's famous logo was created in 1787 and has been used ever since, making it the oldest in the world.

Twinings is so respected that it holds a Royal Warrant. This is a special seal of approval showing that the company supplies goods to the Royal Family. In 1964, the company was bought by Associated British Foods.

Famous Teas and Changes

Twinings is well-known for Earl Grey tea, which is a black tea flavored with oil from the bergamot orange. It's not certain how the company first became linked with this popular tea.

Over the years, Twinings has made some big changes. In 2008, it closed a tea factory in Belfast. By 2011, the company moved much of its tea-making work to China and Poland to help the business run better. However, it kept its factory in Andover, Hampshire, England, open with fewer workers.

In 2023, Twinings stopped making its traditional lapsang souchong tea, a smoky tea that had been sold since the 1700s. It was said to be a favorite drink of the famous British leader Winston Churchill. Twinings said it was hard to get the right tea leaves and that prices were rising.

Making Tea Fairly

A Twinings delivery tricycle from the past.

Twinings runs a program called Sourced with Care. The goal of this program is to help improve the lives of people in the communities where Twinings buys its tea.

The company is also a founding member of the Ethical Tea Partnership. This is a group of tea companies that work together to make sure tea farm workers have good and safe working conditions. Twinings has its own set of rules, called an Ethical Code of Conduct, to make sure its suppliers treat their workers well.

In 2018, a group called Traidcraft Exchange asked big UK tea brands to be more open about where their tea comes from. They wanted to help make sure all workers were treated fairly. In response, Twinings published a list of all its tea suppliers in India. This was seen as a positive step that encouraged other tea companies to do the same.

See also

In Spanish: Twinings para niños