“We are experiencing delivery problems that are affecting the supply of black tea across the country. We apologize for the inconvenience and hope to have new supplies soon.” The note hangs on the shelf where you find tea in some of the Sainsbury’s stores. But for now, there are also tea packets to be found on the shelves. British retail chains and trade unions explain the shortage with the attacks in and around the Red Sea. In recent months, the Houthi militia in Yemen has attacked ships there, causing merchant ships to take a long detour to Europe. The alternative route goes around South Africa’s Cape of Good Hope, and takes two weeks longer than the route via the Red Sea and the Suez Canal. An oil tanker is on fire after the Houthi militia attacked in late January. Photo: The Indian Navy / APE oil tankers are on fire after the Houthi militia attacked in late January. Photo: The Indian Navy / AP Great Britain is the world’s fifth largest importer of tea, and receives more than half of its supplies from India and Kenya. When the ships take the detour to avoid the Red Sea, deliveries are delayed. – Need to fill up soon – I haven’t noticed, because I haven’t needed to buy more tea yet. But now I have to fill up soon, and then I guess I’ll notice the shortage, says Debbie Best. Hard-working Brits have a thing for filling their cupboards with the national drink. They would rather buy a lot and rarely than a little and often. But Debbie Best believes it is wrong for consumers in the UK to suffer from politically driven conflicts elsewhere in the world. Both the cafe owner and his customer are concerned about the lack of tea in British shops. Photo: Gry Blekastad Almås / NRKB Both the cafe owner and his customer are concerned about the lack of tea in British shops. Photo: Gry Blekastad Almås / news In the last month, Great Britain has attacked the Iran-backed Houthi militia in Yemen together with the United States in an attempt to end the ship attacks in the Red Sea. But the Houthis’ attacks have continued. Tea is the first grocery item to be notified of shortages in the UK, as a result of the attacks in the Red Sea. – Supply crisis In the past, several clothing stores have reported delays and possible shortages. – Tea may be the first of many products to be affected by this supply crisis, says Secretary General Marco Forgione at the Institute for Export and International Trade to Reuters. Photo: Gry Blekastad Almås / news Photo: Gry Blekastad Almås / news While others believe the lack of wood will be a short-term problem. – There is a temporary disruption in the supply of some types of black tea, but it will have minimal consequences for consumers, says Andrew Opie of the trade association British Retail Consortium. Café owner Ali in London serves both coffee and tea to his customers. He has so far not had any problems in obtaining tea, but notices that there are fewer large packages available than usual. He suspects that the chain stores have an alternative motivation for announcing a tea crisis. – It is so that they can raise prices. Guaranteed.
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The British lack tea because of the conflict in the Red Sea – news Urix – Foreign news and documentaries
