Over the years, matcha’s popularity has steadily grown, but in 2024, demand surged unexpectedly and without precedent.

The teas used in Ippodo’s blends are harvested only in the late spring. Farmers cannot simply harvest more tea on demand, and each year the amount of tea we can produce is set in advance.

Additionally, high quality matcha production is unflexible and slow. For instance, the traditional stone mill can only grind around 40g of matcha per hour, per mill. These and other specialised machines used for matcha production are limited in number, so the speed of production is impossible to adjust.

These factors, among others, have made it difficult for us to meet the recent surge in demand.

In response, we have temporarily limited the amount of matcha items that can be purchased and paused production of some varieties. We hope to ensure that as many of our customers as possible can still enjoy our matcha.

We know that the current matcha supply challenges may have been frustrating for our customers, and we sincerely apologise for the inconvenience caused. At the same time, we are truly grateful for your patience and understanding as we navigate this situation. On our end, we are working tirelessly to ensure matcha is available for your daily enjoyment as soon as possible. Thank you for your continued support.

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