A moment of tea angst, and a weekly shop that is taking way longer than it should be.

“In decision making, the rationality of individuals is limited by the information they have, the cognitive limitations of their minds, and the finite amount of time they have to make decisions” – Herbert Simon

OK, this is my first weekly shop since starting my blog.  And next up on my shopping list is tea.

I like to think I have a pretty good cognitive capacity to make the right decisions.  But what I lack right now is information and time.

Having a day job of my own, I would’t claim to be hugely au-fait with the inner workings of tea companies.  It’s a British thing: tea drinking and those cosy, ‘Britishy’ brands on our shelves, which are so much part of our culture you pretty much forget it comes from foreign parts.

So having clicked on the info page of my usual ‘big brand’ I am now wondering what the Rainforest Alliance thing is all about.  And, like I said earlier, I need some fast info to make my decision so I can get on with my shopping. So I am going with my immediate impression for the time being and purchasing my usual tea brand, with an email winging its way to their customer services to learn more about it for next time.

Here is my immediate experience in making my decision quickly:

• A quick google doesn’t seem to reveal the range of concerns with the Rainforest Alliance that came up with the RSPO and GreenPalm.

• A quick look at the Rainforest Alliance website gives me an immediately different and more positive impression than the RSPO did. (This is because their communications are centred around the things I want them to be centred round: wildlife, local people, economic viability of doing the right thing, environment including rainforest. NOT process, conferences, and other corporate speak like the RSPO. See my next posts!)

So, for the time being my usual brand will remain in my basket  until I hear from their customer service team and I get some more research done.  I’m still investigating though, so any further info any of you guys might have is welcome!

And ironically, after all that I am now in need of a nice cuppa…