The Truth About the Difficulty in Obtaining Organic Matcha in 2025
Matcha has grown in popularity over the last few years. It moved from being a niche health product to breaking into cafés, wellness brands, and even premium grocery stores.
In North America, young adults from Generation Z and Millennials have a positive perception of organic matcha not only because of its great taste and aesthetic qualities but also due to its health properties, such as being high in antioxidants, providing sustained energy without crashes, and clean label sourcing. This has made organic matches more desirable in North America, improving the interest and competition among importers. Except that things would be different for companies based in the US that want to source verified organic matcha by 2025.
The market has become a lot more complicated and restrictive. There are two reasons.
First, high-quality matcha has become scarce globally because of tight supply limits while demand keeps growing.
Second, there are new extra rules for importing organic tea. This is what people running cafés or dealing with specialty grocery stores need to grasp right now more than ever. If this issue is not dealt with, they will lack the ability to create a strong, sustainable, long-term plan.
1. Ongoing Matcha Shortage
One of the very few is said to be the authentic good quality matcha, at present not enough in the market and with several reasons behind it playing a role, one of which is known to be the most important; the significantly rising global demand, mainly from the United States where an increasing number of young people are taking a penchant for the beverage. A case in point is how trends in recent markets show that Gen Z in America is embracing matcha as an alternative to coffee and as a health trend over platforms including TikTok and Instagram. Matches of videos influence latte art made out of matcha, ceremonies of using the product as matcha itself, and food that is made from or flavored with it have ignited the social media world, while huge café chains like Starbucks and local specialty cafés alike are rolling out more products to cater to this demand.
Influencers and wellness advocates now regularly present matcha for its antioxidant properties, sustained energy with no crash, and cultural points. A 2024 report from Grand View Research says that the global matcha market will keep growing quickly, with the US being a big reason for this demand. Simultaneously, the supply continues to be constrained. Japan accounts for over 90% of the world’s premium matcha production.
Though countries like China and Kenya try to grow matcha, the quality and authenticity of matcha usually do not meet expectations. For authentic matcha, meticulous shading, hand-picking, and stone-grinding practices are Japanese traditions that are rarely replicated with the same care in other places. This makes organic Japanese matcha the gold standard, drastically limiting the global supply.
Several years of harsh climatic conditions—abnormally warm winters, uneven rainfall, and early frosts—have thrown off the sensitive tea-growing cycle in prime places like Shizuoka and Uji. For example, unusually warm weather sometimes occurs in very early spring. This can cause tea to bud early; tender tea leaves face a tough challenge if a cold snap comes. Irregular rainfall messes up both the quality and quantity of the crop. High humidity usually helps plant diseases, but it does not help lower the disease pressure on crops. Such climate-induced challenges have led to reduced volumes of harvests and poor consistency of quality over many harvests.
So, even Japanese producers, after having advanced cultivation methods and years of experience, are struggling to fulfill the global demand. This scarcity is now reflected hugely in the unavailability and rising prices in the world market.
Several reputable sources, including Bloomberg and The Japan Times have reported extensively on this growing imbalance between surging global demand and Japan’s limited supply of matcha.
Nikkei Asia will note that matcha prices surged by more than 30% between 2023 and 2024, bolstered by booming exports to North America and Europe, mainly in café and wellness product segments. It was shown that, besides climate-related harvest reductions, a large land area is unavailable for expanding organic certified cultivation in Kyoto and Shizuoka, where demand already exceeds capacity.
It points out that the slow, laborious production process—mainly traditional stone mill grinding—further limits how fast supply can scale, even as global consumers want more. This becomes a bottleneck for high-grade ceremonial and organic matcha, requiring more delicate processing and stricter quality control.
Adding to ‘The Japan Times’, smaller producers and longtime organic farmers find it particularly challenging to mesh international demand with intrinsic farming values as they cope with more stringent international certification requirements. Most specifically, the organic sector has had to deal with undue burdens because of increased labor, cost, and inspection requirements. For domestic companies willing to work their way around the intricate web of supplier contracts, sourcing organic matcha requires careful drafting alongside the intricacies of actual document logistics. These issues span everything from the availability of raw leaves and production schedules to global logistical operations and pricing systems. For Japan, viewing these factors in unison has never been this critical for US-based companies. What was previously classified as a periodic and temporary supply stressor has become an enduring underlying issue.
2. USDA’s Stricter Organic Import Regulations (Effective 2024)
Even though there tends to be a prominent focus on the lack of matcha, a far more understated development occurred in 2024, drastically changing how organic tea is imported into the United States. This is just one more example of a straightforward yet profound alteration. The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA)
In this case, the NOP was overhauled entirely (red flag). Getting control over the illegitimate organic imports that are flooding the market urged them to act. The heart of the shift can be attributed to the newly required NOP Import Certificate, also known as the NOPID. As the name suggests, it captures the essence of a multidimensional bureaucracy. No shipment of certified organic goods intended for the United States can leave its country of origin without this certificate onboard. Verification will occur upon entry into the country, and alignment will be made with the importer’s USDA-accredited organic certification records.
Although this restriction aids in reducing fraudulent activities and improving control, it also creates further logistical and compliance burdens that many businesses are still trying to deal with. Organically certified products such as matcha were previously imported with minimal scrutiny by intermediary distributors or resellers who lacked direct ties with the producers. The new legislation has changed this: those without verified documentation of supply chains or proper registration can no longer import organic certified goods legally into the United States. However, the consequences of these modifications are not limited to traders based in the US. Even Japanese producers and exporters who might have organic certifications under Japan’s JAS system cannot legally export their organic matcha to the US unless the NOPID registered with the USDA is accredited. Having a certification from Japan does not mean there are no restrictions under US import policies. The changes have disrupted established trading patterns and highlighted the need for stronger collaboration between Japanese farms or processors and US importers.
Why Obtaining a NOPID is Difficult
Acquiring a NOPID is not simply a paperwork exercise; it is a rigorous, resource-intensive certification process that requires importers to demonstrate complete transparency across the entire supply chain.
To obtain a valid NOPID, US-based companies must work with a USDA-accredited certifying agency, which conducts a comprehensive review that includes:
- Verify all organic certificates in the supply chain, from farm to processor to shipper.
- Proof of segregation between organic and conventional (nonorganic) materials throughout storage, production, and transit.
- Documented traceability links each batch of imported product to its origin and organic status.
- Compliance audits and on-site inspections, both before certification and regularly thereafter.
- Robust record keeping and annual renewal procedures, including submission of shipping records, supplier declarations, and updated certification statuses.
Such prerequisites have complicated things for smaller indirect importers or indirect sourcing businesses to qualify. Several active organic matcha importers have ceased operations or shifted to nonorganic matcha owing to the time, cost, and sophistication of acquiring a NOPID. Most of these certifying activities are relatively slow. As of early 2025, only a handful of certified US organic matcha importers, for some reason, have ample reserves and are capped with organic matcha certified under the new rules. People who depend on these types of businesses, resell or sell without a farming link, and unproven brokers, will face covert challenges in maintaining the law concerning these aspects. How This Compares to the EU System
Interestingly, while the USDA’s 2024 enforcement measures may feel abrupt to many US businesses, similar regulations have long been the norm in the European Union. The EU has implemented strict organic import controls for years, requiring all organic products entering its member states to be accompanied by a Certificate of Inspection (COI) issued through the TRACES (Trade Control and Expert System) platform.
Under the EU system:
- An EU-authorized control body must preapprove every shipment of organic goods.
- The COI must be uploaded and validated in TRACES before the goods are dispatched from the country of origin.
- Without this certificate, entry to the EU’s organic market will remain blocked legally, even if the product is certified organic in its country of origin.
- Additionally, the EU requires equivalency or recognition agreements with exporting countries, ensuring that organic standards are mutually respected and enforced.
As a whole, the EU paradigm emphasizes traceability, standard synchronization, and preemptive compliance verification. On one hand, this has helped maintain the EU’s trust and credibility in its organic market, while on the other hand, it has protected consumers. These strict regulations are challenging for exporters without previous experience with the system. For the first time in history, the United States has pre-verified, ship-level documentation for all organic imports required, a step towards the EU, which will be implemented by the update of the National Organic Program in 2024. This change legally punished non-compliance while requiring more proof from exporters and importers regarding evidence. While this change may appear constraining for US companies, it cultivates credibility for the products, harmonizes competition for all companies, and aligns with the international standards of organic trade.
A Reliable Solution for US Businesses
The reality of the situation is apparent; this new set of rules is particularly problematic for small and medium-sized firms that did not previously have any practical experience with sourcing.
At Shizuoka Tea, we understand today’s market’s complexities and are willing to help you navigate these challenges. I also take pride in mentioning that we are one of the few US importers who hold an NOP Import Certificate NOPID.
This means that we comply with the ever-changing policies of the organic standards set by the USDA, which means every shipment of organic matcha we export is legally certified and verified to the highest level of organic integrity.
What sets us apart:
- Direct from Farm Sourcing: Our partners are tea producers located in Japan, Shizuoka, and Kyoto, areas famously known for their matcha. We ONLY work with reputable, certified organic tea producers.
- Vertically integrated supply chain: No intermediaries. From cultivation to import, we control the process end-to-end, ensuring authenticity, quality, and compliance.
- Aligned support for certification by USDA: Smooth and prompt customs clearance is possible because our internal documentation systems are pre-audited and vetted by USDA-accredited certifiers.
Such an organization complies with regulations while providing unmatched quality, tighter cost controls, and expedited delivery speed—factors that modern, dynamic matcha markets value.
If you are looking for an ideal partner as a Café Owner, Active Brand, Tea Shop, or Wholesale Distributor of certified organic matcha in 2025 and later, you are welcome to partner with us. Contact us today to learn more about our wholesale services.
The Difficulty of Obtaining Organic Matcha in 2025 — FAQ
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About the author
Kei Nishida
Author, CEO Dream of Japan
Certification: PMP, BS in Computer Science
Education: Western Washington University