Congress Disbanded Key Tea Oversight Board 30 Years Ago, Impacting Quality

The loss of the FDA's Board of Tea Experts has led to a more complex and less effective tea import inspection system.

Jan. 31, 2026 at 5:15am

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In 1996, Congress disbanded the FDA's Board of Tea Experts, a 99-year-old program that set standards for imported tea and ensured quality. The consequences of this decision are still being felt today, as the tea import inspection process has become more cumbersome and less effective at maintaining tea quality and taste for American consumers.

Why it matters

The Board of Tea Experts played a crucial role in protecting consumers from low-quality, adulterated, or unsafe imported tea. Its elimination has led to issues like over-rejection of tea shipments due to unclear regulations, as well as a potential decline in the overall taste and quality of tea available to American consumers.

The details

The Board of Tea Experts was established in 1897 to set standards for imported tea and ensure quality. It was made up of tea industry professionals who would taste and evaluate teas each year to establish benchmarks. This program was overseen by the FDA starting in the 1930s. In 1996, Congress defunded and disbanded the board, despite industry efforts to save it. This led to tea imports being subjected to the same inspections as other food products, causing confusion and over-rejection of shipments due to unclear regulations around pesticide residues. While the system has improved since then, experts say the loss of the taste test component has likely contributed to more Americans finding tea to be bitter or bland.

  • The Board of Tea Experts was established in 1897.
  • Bob Dick became Supervisory Tea Examiner in 1953 and held the position until the board was disbanded in 1996.
  • Congress defunded and disbanded the Board of Tea Experts in 1996.

The players

Board of Tea Experts

A cohort of tea industry professionals who were summoned once a year by the United States Food and Drug Administration to meet in New York and choose the teas that would serve as standards by which all other imported tea would be judged.

Bob Dick

The third and final Supervisory Tea Examiner, who held the position from 1953 until the board was disbanded in 1996.

Mike Spillane

The president of a tea importing company called G.S. Haly and one of the final board members in 1995.

Peter Goggi

A former president of the Tea Association of the USA who served multiple terms on the Board of Tea Experts.

Harry Reid

A former Democratic senator from Nevada who was vocal about his opposition to the Board of Tea Experts in the early 1990s.

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What they’re saying

“It was like a watchdog of the industry. I was for that. But I also did not mind that once it was gone, I could save four or five days of delay on my shipments because it wasn't held up by the tea examiner anymore.”

— Mike Spillane, President, G.S. Haly tea importing company (Slate)

“It's one thing to sit on high and say, 'What could this possibly do? Let's cut it down.' But nobody is aware of the knock-on effects. We had a process that was in place for 100 years and worked very well. We ended up with a much more cumbersome kind of process.”

— Peter Goggi, Former president, Tea Association of the USA (Slate)

What’s next

Experts continue to advocate for improvements to the tea import inspection system, including the need to reinstate a formal taste test component to ensure quality and taste for American consumers.

The takeaway

The dismantling of the Board of Tea Experts, a century-old program that helped maintain tea quality and safety, is an example of how short-sighted political decisions can have lasting negative impacts on consumers. This case highlights the importance of carefully considering the full consequences of eliminating regulatory oversight, even for seemingly minor programs.