Tea Certificates Buyers Ask For: What Each Proves and How to Check It

Buyers of Vietnamese green tea ask for papers for three different reasons: to show how the tea was grown, to show how the plant is run and to show the lot may enter a market. This page maps the papers to those reasons, says what each one proves and where to check it. The detail pages follow the table. Checked 19 October 2026.

What each paper answers

Paper	Question it answers	Issued by	Where to check	Detail page
Rainforest Alliance farm and supply chain certificates	Was the tea grown and handled to a sustainability standard, and can it be traced	Rainforest Alliance certification bodies	Rainforest Alliance list of certificate holders and the QR code	Rainforest Alliance tea
Organic certificate and shipment paper	Is the tea organic for a named market	Certifier, then the market system (TRACES, NOP Import Certificate, JAS route)	Certifier list, TRACES, Organic Integrity Database	Organic tea: EU, USDA, JAS
Fairtrade certificate	Were hired workers or small growers covered by the Fairtrade tea standard, and is the buyer a certified trader	Fairtrade certification through FLOCERT	FLOCERT Fairtrade Customer Search, by FLO ID	Fairtrade tea
VietGAP certificate	Does the grower or group keep a managed system with records under the Vietnamese crop standard	Certification bodies designated for crop VietGAP	The body and the national accreditation schedules	VietGAP tea
BRCGS Food Safety or IFS Food certificate	Is the plant run to an audited food safety standard	Accredited certification bodies	BRCGS Directory, IFS database	BRCGS and IFS at a tea factory
Social audit report (SMETA)	Are workers treated lawfully and is the site safe, on the audit date	An audit firm working to the Sedex method, not a certifier	The report itself, its date and scope. Sedex is a platform, not a public register	SMETA at tea factories
Ethical Tea Partnership membership	Does the buyer belong to the tea group that shares sourcing site data. It is not a certificate and not an audit	ETP, a membership body for packers, traders and retailers	ETP member list	Ethical Tea Partnership
Residue limit for the destination	Will the lot clear on pesticides	The regulator, not a certifier	EU Pesticides Database, Japan MRL database, Korea PLS	EU MRL lookup, Japan, Korea
Certificate of analysis	What was measured in this lot	An independent or seller’s laboratory	The lab and its accreditation body	Tea certificate of analysis

Matrix: product against paper

Product	Standard to cite	Certificates buyers ask for	Tests and documents	Market rules
Orthodox green tea leaf	ISO 11287, cupping	Rainforest Alliance, Fairtrade or ETP on request, organic, VietGAP	Sampling, residue panel, micro, foreign matter, COA	EU MRL lookup, Japan positive list
Gunpowder and chunmee for North and West Africa and the Middle East	Export type codes, grade codes, GB/T 14456	BRCGS or IFS for packers	Foreign matter, moisture	Destination rules
Fannings and dust for tea bags	Particle size	BRCGS or IFS	Sieving, micro	EU contaminant limits
Powder and matcha-style	Buyer spec	Organic, BRCGS	Micro, heavy metals, particle size	EU, US, Korea
Jasmine, lotus and scented	Scenting rules	HACCP	Flavour against flower, residue	EU flavouring labels
Organic lots	Organic standards	EU, USDA, JAS organic	Shipment paper checks	EU organic import

What none of these papers prove

• That the lot is free of residues. A certificate describes a system. Residue is a test on the lot: see the test panel.
• That the lot is the one on the certificate. Match the lot number, bag marks and the transaction record.
• That the certificate is current. Check the issuer’s database on the day you contract.
• That a middleman is covered. Every link that handles the tea needs its own paper.

How to verify any certificate in six lines

1. Get the original with the certificate number, name, address, scope and expiry.
2. Find the issuer’s database or list. Search by number first, then by name.
3. Match name, address and scope to the plant you are buying from.
4. Read the scope for the product and the process steps on site.
5. Save a dated screenshot.
6. Put the number and the validity in the contract.

Market rules in one table

Market	Limit for a pesticide with no tea limit	System	Page
European Union	0.01 mg/kg default	Regulation (EC) No 396/2005, EU Pesticides Database	EU MRL lookup
Japan	0.01 ppm uniform limit	Positive list system	Japan positive list
Korea	0.01 mg/kg uniform limit	Positive List System	Korea requirements
United States	No tolerance, no residue allowed	EPA tolerances, FDA enforcement	Residue limits guide and FSVP article
United States, plant side	Facility registration with FDA, a US agent and the registration number on prior notice	21 CFR Part 1, Subpart H	FDA registration for a tea exporter

For the papers that travel with a shipment see tea export documents. For growers and cooperatives preparing a certificate see Rainforest Alliance certification steps for tea farms and the organic conversion period. The test methods and the ISO standards for tea have their own section: see tea standards and test methods. For the supplier side of a plant audit see the factory audit checklist for importers.

A note on this site. greenteavietnam.com does not issue, hold or confirm certificates, and gives no legal advice. Ask the supplier for the original and confirm it with the issuer. We introduce buyers to up to 3 Vietnamese suppliers and the buyer checks the papers. Send a spec through the RFQ form and we reply within 24 business hours.

Frequently asked questions

Sources

• European Commission: EU Pesticides Database
• Rainforest Alliance knowledge centre: List of certificate holders
• European Commission: Organic farming, trade (import routes and certificate of inspection)
• Consumer Affairs Agency, Japan: Positive list system for agricultural chemical residues
• MFDS, Korea: Positive List System for pesticide residues

Standards and rules are cited as references. They are not claims about greenteavietnam.com or any supplier. Confirm the edition and current status with the issuing body.