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Frequently Asked Questions
The Company
Who is Zhena?
Inspired by the gift of her gypsy heritage, Zhena Muzyka began pedaling her magical teas out of a cart to support herself and her baby boy, Sage. At the time, Zhena was without medical insurance and without sufficient funds to finance the several surgeries needed to insure Sage’s survival. Zhena’s Gypsy Tea formed out of these challenging beginnings and now both the company and Sage are thriving.
Where is Zhena’s Gypsy Tea located?
Ojai, California, a little town in the mountains above Ventura and Santa Barbara.
The Tea
Where does the tea come from?
All of Zhena’s blends are sourced from Fair Trade, organic gardens in Sri Lanka, India and two Fair Trade, organic projects in China. Our company has direct relationships with our tea growers, the tea pluckers and the families who depend on the income from our fair trade purchases.
What are the health benefits of Zhena’s Tea?
As a master tea blender and Aromatherapist, Zhena has studied the effects of essential oils on women’s health and knows how to use essential oils to increase physical vitality, soothe the mind and balance emotions.
By blending her teas to have Aromatherapeutic™ benefits which are exclusive to Zhena’s Gypsy Tea, Zhena has found ways to bring the power of botanicals together with tea leaves for a dynamic combination of health virtues and for the first time in tea, Aromatherapeutic™ benefits.
What is the difference between the caffeine in tea versus the caffeine in coffee?
Black Teas have half the caffeine of coffee and have a different chemical make-up. Caffeine in tea enters the blood stream at a much slower rate than caffeine in coffee and doesn’t hit the central nervous system with a big spike. Not only does this help reduce stress, but it also helps with weight control due to a larger stabilization of one’s blood sugar. Many of Zhena’s teas such as Red Lavender, Fireside Chai, and Chamomile Blessings have no caffeine.
Is there sweetener in the teas?
No. Two of Zhena’s teas, Grand Green, and Ambrosia White Plum have a natural, nutritional supplement called Stevia, which happens to taste sweet.
Organic
Are all the ingredients natural and organic?
Yes. Zhena guarantees only the finest, highest grade essential oils of fruits and flowers used in her hand-blended teas, and only natural flavorings of liqueurs and spices are used. The natural flavors are derived primarily from organic fruits, spices, herbs with a base of either rice or olive oil, or an organic alcohol base. They are certified GMO and allergen free and are 100% natural.
Fair Trade
What does “Fair Trade” mean?
Fair Trade means that Zhena has a personal relationship with the tea growers in the gardens she touches. She stands in solidarity with her workers and supports them by providing fair wages and by uplifting the tea growing communities with added benefits such as maternity leave and health care. In order to provide these benefits, Zhena has committed to paying her workers an extra 1 euro (= to $1.60) per kilogram which is up to ten times more than conventional prices. The workers in Zhena’s gardens benefit from guaranteed health insurance, education, safe working conditions and no child labor. Zhena’s Gypsy Tea tins are manufactured in a certified Fair Trade facility in China and it is the only company that uses Fair Labor Certified Suppliers. You too can join in the Fair Trade movement by buying Fair Trade products and advocating for humane working conditions worldwide.
Green
Apart from being organic, Zhena’s Gypsy Tea also engages in green practices such as buying wind power through the purchase of green tags to offset her company’s carbon footprint (how much CO2 they produce through production and electricity costs). The company’s tins are recyclable and also have been known to be used as pen holders and martini shakers!
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