Notable Japanese Tea Varieties Beyond Matcha: Workshops Showcasing the Appeal of Matcha and Roasted Green Tea to be Held in Two U.S. Cities

• Industry professionals incorporating Japanese tea into their businesses will share their valuable insights.
• The first session will be held in Los Angeles (LA) on Wednesday, December 10; the second session is scheduled for early February in New York (NY).
• The event will also be streamed live on Instagram.

—The GREEN TEA Room JFOODO PODCAST launches December 8—

TOKYO--(BUSINESS WIRE)--The Japan Food Product Overseas Promotion Center (JFOODO) has been engaging U.S. millennials since 2017. In FY2025, they will hold two Japanese tea workshops in the United States (U.S.) as part of their efforts to promote understanding of the high quality that Japanese tea leaves boast and to further expand the Japanese tea fan community.

Japanese tea, a key export item targeted by the Japanese government for its export value goal of 5 trillion yen by 2030, is one of Japan’s representative agricultural, forestry, and fishery products. Demand is growing, driven by factors such as rising health consciousness and increased interest in Japanese cuisine overseas, particularly in the United States. Japan’s global tea exports from January to August 2025 totaled 38 billion yen, already significantly surpassing the 36.3 billion yen recorded last year.

With the growing demand for matcha, this workshop aims to explore the expanding world of Japanese tea. Participants will learn how to utilize matcha according to its quality while also deepening their understanding of the appeal of Japanese tea, which encompasses a wide variety of tea types beyond matcha, including roasted green tea (hojicha), sencha, and gyokuro.

The workshop will offer opportunities to learn about various Japanese teas, including the characteristics of roasted green tea—which has been gaining attention in the U.S. in recent years—and brown rice tea (genmaicha), a traditional Japanese blended tea. Additionally, activities such as matcha preparation demonstrations and tea tasting sessions (Chakabuki) will be conducted. The aim is to boost the fan community by providing opportunities for participants to interact with each other.

The workshop will be held in two cities: Los Angeles and New York. The Los Angeles workshop will feature Zach Mangan, owner of the Japanese tea specialty cafe Kettl, as an instructor. Additionally, talk sessions are scheduled with wellness creator and founder of Frauth Matcha Remy Morimoto Park, as well as Alyssa Antoci, lifestyle creator. The event will be streamed and recorded on Instagram Live; all are welcome to participate.

[Workshop Overview]
Session 1
Location: Los Angeles
Instructor: Zach Mangan
Guests:
Remy Morimoto Park (@veggiekins) — Cookbook author, wellness creator and founder of Frauth Matcha
Alyssa Antoci (@alyssaantoci) — Lifestyle creator

The workshop will consist of three 30-minute sessions.
Part 1: Learning Session (30 minutes) “Discover Matcha: Learn & Experience Tea Whisking”
Part 2: Japanese Green Tea Real Connection (30 minutes) “Your Matcha Story”
Part 3: Community Circle (30 minutes) “Tasting & Expressing like Chakabuki”

Session 2
Location: New York
Instructor: Zach Mangan
Guest: Sean Considine (among others)
*The in-person participants for the second session will be selected via lottery on Instagram at a later date. Details will be announced on the official account.

[Instagram Live account]
https://www.instagram.com/justteayourself/

The GREEN TEA Room JFOODO PODCAST launches December 8

JFOODO utilizes its official Instagram account to promote Japanese tea in the U.S. market, expanding awareness of Japanese tea’s appeal and broadening its fan base. As of December 1, 2025, the account has grown to 55 thousand followers.
This fiscal year, in response to the growing demand for Japanese tea in the U.S., JFOODO will launch an official podcast channel and begin streaming starting December 8. On the podcast, Remy—who is also a guest at the first workshop—serves as this year’s host. We’ll deliver content where you can enjoy learning about the charm and knowledge of Japanese tea, including visits to tea fields and Japanese tea cafes in Japan, as well as scenes from talk sessions held locally in the U.S.

Official podcast information
https://creators.spotify.com/pod/profile/jfoodogreenteaus/

About JFOODO

The Japan Food Overseas Promotion Center (JFOODO) was established on April 1, 2017, to lead nationwide consumer-facing promotion efforts aimed at branding Japanese agricultural, forestry, and fishery products as well as foods. To further expand exports of Japanese agricultural, forestry, and fishery products and foods, it is essential to stimulate additional demand overseas. JFOODO will stimulate demand by strengthening overseas consumer promotions and contribute to expanding exports of Japan’s agricultural, forestry, and fishery products.

Website: https://www.jetro.go.jp/en/jfoodo/