The Wave of New-Style Tea Beverages: Product Innovation and Raw Material Revolution

In recent years, a powerful wave of new-style tea beverages has swept the global consumer market, especially in China, where it has surpassed traditional hot brewed tea and convenient bottled tea drinks to become the third major way of tea consumption. This emerging tea culture is not just a simple upgrade in beverage consumption but represents the rise of a brand-new lifestyle and consumption concept. With unique charms such as natural and healthy raw material choices, fashionable and avant-garde design sense, and rich and varied taste experiences, new-style tea beverages have successfully captured a broad consumer base, primarily the younger generation. According to research published by He Qunxian et al. in China Tea Processing, the market size of new-style tea beverages in China reached a staggering 290 billion RMB in 2022, with annual tea consumption exceeding 200,000 tons. This enormous volume directly drove the growth of the related tea industry by over 10 billion RMB. This rapidly growing consumer market not only provides an important channel to absorb China’s current tea production surplus but also brings unprecedented development opportunities to the entire traditional tea industry.

However, opportunities often coexist with challenges. The new-style tea beverage industry’s extreme pursuit of product innovation, along with its tea usage requirements that are distinctly different from traditional brewing and industrialized beverages, poses significant tests for the long-established traditional tea enterprises. Traditional tea companies face severe challenges in terms of technological innovation capabilities, understanding of emerging market consumer demands, and adaptability to rapid product iteration. How to accurately grasp the tea usage code of new-style tea beverages and produce high-quality tea raw materials that meet market trends has become a core issue related to the survival of tea enterprises and even the future development of the entire tea industry. This article aims to deeply analyze the research results of He Qunxian et al., systematically sort out the main product types, core characteristics of new-style tea beverages, and the current status of the tea raw materials used. It focuses on elaborating the innovation and development trends in tea raw materials driven by market demand, covering aspects such as variety breeding, primary processing, refined and deep processing, and blending technology. At the same time, the article will also explore the future development direction of the new-style tea beverage industry and attempt to provide valuable references and insights for the high-quality transformation and upgrading of the traditional tea industry in the context of the new consumption era, aiming to promote the coordinated development and common prosperity of new-style tea beverages and the traditional tea industry.

The rapid market dominance of new-style tea beverages lies fundamentally in the meticulous refinement and continuous innovation of the products themselves. Brands skillfully blend traditional tea elements with diverse ingredients such as fruits, milk, cheese, syrups, and even coffee, creating an endless stream of rapidly iterating product matrices. The goal is to constantly stimulate consumers’ taste buds and create market-leading “blockbuster” items. Based on market observations and summaries by He Qunxian et al., the current product spectrum in the new-style tea beverage market can be broadly divided into five main categories: new-style milk tea, new-style fruit tea, new-style pure tea, matcha drinks, and the emerging tea-coffee hybrid (cha-cafe).

As the backbone of the market, new-style milk tea has also evolved internally into different sub-styles to meet diverse taste demands. Among them, “rich milk tea” is a relatively classic type, usually using strongly flavored Gongfu black tea or broken black tea as the base, paired with a rich-tasting thick milk base, moderately sweet syrup, and various toppings like pearls and pudding. It is made through standard procedures such as on-site tea extraction and thorough shaking and mixing. This type of milk tea is popular for its full aroma and rich taste; for example, Guming’s classic “Uncle Milk Tea” is a representative. However, in the past three years, a trend pursuing freshness and low burden has also entered the milk tea world. “Fresh milk tea” or “light milk tea” emerged and rose rapidly. These products typically use highly aromatic teas (such as high-aroma oolong or scented tea) to extract the tea soup, which is then mixed with fresh milk or plant-based milk like oat or coconut milk, and modulated with an appropriate amount of syrup. Its taste is relatively refreshing, better highlighting the fusion of tea and milk aromas. Chagee’s “Boyazixian” is a phenomenal blockbuster among them, with cumulative sales exceeding 600 million cups, demonstrating its popularity. In addition, cheese-topped tea is also a non-negligible branch of new-style milk tea. It consists of freshly brewed loose-leaf tea topped with a layer of dense and smooth cheese foam, which is usually made from dairy products, sugar, and other raw materials whipped at high speed into a foam, offering drinkers a dual taste experience of tea aroma and salty-sweet milk flavor.

Another major mainstream category running parallel to milk tea is new-style fruit tea. These beverages are based on tea soup extracted from tea leaves, mixed with fresh fruit chunks, juice, or jam, and modulated with syrup, toppings, etc. New-style fruit tea has firmly captured consumers’ hearts with its refreshing taste, fruity aroma, and colorful appearance, especially favored by groups pursuing health and natural flavors. Bestselling products emerge endlessly in the market. For instance, Heytea’s Succulent Grape series has cumulative sales exceeding 150 million cups, and Guming’s Super A Grape series also achieved sales of 130 million cups. The innovation in fruit tea is not only reflected in the ultimate use of common fruits (like grapes, strawberries, mangoes) but also in the exploration of seasonal fruits and niche regional specialty fruits. According to the “New Tea Drink Research Report” released by the China Chain Store & Franchise Association, the average monthly sales of newly launched mulberry fruit tea in the summer of 2023 exceeded 6 million cups, while the highest monthly sales of bayberry fruit tea reached an astonishing 15 million cups. Meanwhile, previously niche specialty fruits like emblic, wampee, and roxburgh rose have gradually been introduced into product lines, entering the public consumer’s view and further enriching the flavor landscape of fruit tea.

Compared to the “liveliness” of milk tea and fruit tea, new-style pure tea returns to the origin of tea, emphasizing the aroma and taste of the tea leaves themselves. It mainly refers to clear tea products made by extracting tea leaves on-site in stores. Depending on the extraction temperature and method, it can be divided into hot-brewed tea and cold-brewed tea. Hot-brewed tea usually better stimulates the rich aroma and mellow taste of the tea leaves, while cold-brewed tea is favored by some consumers for its sweet, smooth, and low-bitterness taste characteristics. Matcha drinks utilize fine matcha powder mixed with fresh milk, syrup, or other auxiliary materials to create beverages with a unique slightly bitter yet sweet aftertaste and vibrant green color. Although matcha products account for a relatively small proportion of the overall menu, their unique flavor and visual appeal give them a stable audience and wide coverage. Recently, innovations combining matcha with other teas like jasmine green tea have also begun to appear. Finally, cha-cafe, as the newest category, is a creative fusion of tea (or its extracts) and coffee. For example, Luckin Coffee’s China Cha-Cafe series launched in 2023 attempted to introduce tea flavors into coffee, light milk tea, and even fruit tea product lines. Although still a relatively niche market, it represents a new exploration direction for cross-category fusion.

Delving into the choices and applications of tea bases behind these dazzling new-style tea beverage products reveals their crucial role. The team of He Qunxian et al. conducted a detailed survey of the menus of 13 well-known tea beverage brands in the market, comprehensively analyzing the tea base application in 390 products on sale (covering 170 fruit teas, 158 milk teas, 35 pure teas, 19 matcha drinks, and 8 cha-cafes, as shown in Table 1). The research results clearly reveal the core pattern of tea base application in current new-style tea beverages: jasmine green tea, black tea, and oolong tea are the absolute mainstays, with their combined application accounting for over a staggering 83% (see Table 2).

Note: Based on data presented in He Qunxian et al. Percentages reflect those stated in the text. The exact number of products for some categories () was derived or estimated based on percentages. Total applications may exceed 390 due to potential overlaps or blends in the source analysis.*

Specifically, jasmine green tea, with its fragrant aroma and wide adaptability, firmly holds the top position among new-style tea beverage bases, accounting for 47.95% of applications. Whether used as a base for fruit tea, rich milk tea, or fresh milk tea, jasmine green tea can well complement or blend with other flavors (see Table 3 for breakdown). It is worth noting that new tea drink brands’ requirements for the quality of jasmine green tea are also continuously increasing. The use of high-aroma jasmine green tea scented seven, eight, or even more times is common, showing the ultimate pursuit of aroma experience. Besides jasmine tea, other floral teas such as gardenia tea and osmanthus oolong tea are also favored by brands, with a combined application share of 6.15%, mainly used to develop distinctive fresh milk tea products.

Black tea base ranks second in application share (17.95%), with 70 products using black tea as a base in the survey. Black tea is the most commonly used base for making rich milk tea, accounting for 12.82% of all surveyed products, as its strong tea flavor and mellow taste combine perfectly with dairy products. In addition, black tea is also used in some fruit teas, pure teas, and fresh milk teas (see Table 4). Traditional Gongfu black teas (such as Dian Hong, Lapsang Souchong) and Ceylon black tea are common black tea bases. At the same time, some brands are actively exploring and applying innovative black tea varieties. For example, Chabaidao uses Meizhan black tea (made from the oolong tea cultivar Meizhan), and Guming uses Fu Ye Luo Shui Xiang (based on Jin Guan Yin black tea, Jin Guan Yin also being an oolong cultivar). These innovative attempts bring richer aroma layers and flavor expressions to black tea bases.

Oolong tea base follows closely in application share (17.44%), with 68 products using oolong tea. Oolong tea, with its ever-changing aroma and taste characteristics, shows strong potential in new-style tea beverages, especially widely applied in fruit tea, fresh milk tea, and pure tea (see Table 5). Different aroma types of oolong tea have their own fans: oolong teas with roasted aroma (such as some Wuyi rock teas or strong-aroma Tieguanyin), varieties with both floral and roasted aromas (such as Jin Guan Yin oolong, Bai Ya Qi Lan oolong, and the recently popular Ya Shi Xiang Dancong) perform particularly well in fruit tea and fresh milk tea; while light-aroma oolong teas (such as light-aroma Tieguanyin, Si Ji Chun oolong) are favored for their refreshing taste and unique charm.

Matcha products account for about 5.64% of applications. Commonly used raw materials include matcha powder produced in Zhejiang, Guizhou, etc., usually paired with dairy products. Although the number of products is relatively small, they cover a wide range of brands and stores. The number of commercially available new-style tea beverages using non-jasmine scented green tea (such as common pan-fired or baked green tea) as a base is relatively small. If used, brands usually choose green tea varieties with prominent aroma or special flavor, such as Nuo Mi Xiang green tea with a sticky rice aroma, or the renowned Longjing green tea. Finally, flavored tea solid beverages, i.e., tea powder treated with flavoring, are currently mainly used in the cha-cafe track. For example, Luckin Coffee uses such raw materials to develop its cha-cafe, light milk tea, and some fruit tea products.

By sorting out the new-style tea beverage products and their tea base applications, we can clearly see that this industry is characterized by diversified categories, innovative flavors, and a high dependence on specific tea types (especially high-aroma teas). This market preference is profoundly influencing the production and innovation direction of upstream tea raw materials.

The booming development of the new-style tea beverage industry and its ultimate pursuit of product flavor act like a powerful market force, driving innovation and breakthroughs in upstream tea raw material production technology from the demand side. The innovation speed and iteration frequency of this industry far exceed those of the traditional tea beverage field, placing unprecedentedly high demands on tea raw materials, especially in terms of aroma performance, flavor uniqueness, and supply stability. To adapt to this growing and rapidly changing market demand, the tea production and research fields have launched a series of targeted innovative works, covering various aspects from variety breeding to processing technology.

A very significant trend in the new-style tea beverage market is the “pursuit of aroma,” meaning the high importance and preference given to tea aroma. Consumers, especially the younger generation, are often attracted to tea drinks with unique and prominent aromas. This trend directly promotes the exploration, introduction, and application of characteristic high-aroma tea varieties. He Qunxian et al. pointed out that the explosion of the phenomenal product “Ya Shi Xiang Lemon Tea” is a landmark event. It successfully pushed the originally niche high-aroma oolong tea – Ya Shi Xiang Dancong (now officially renamed Yin Hua Xiang Dancong) – to the forefront of the market, thereby initiating a wave of using niche high-aroma oolong teas as tea bases. Subsequently, various distinctive high-aroma Dancong teas such as Mi Lan Xiang, Huang Zhi Xiang, and Tong Tian Xiang were successively introduced and used by major tea beverage brands. In addition to Guangdong Dancong tea, some high-aroma varieties cultivated and owned by Fujian Province, such as Jin Mu Dan, Jin Guan Yin, Huang Guan Yin, Huang Mei Gui, Dan Gui, etc., are also considered very suitable for the development of new tea beverage products due to their unique aroma characteristics, and corresponding tea beverage products are currently available on the market. This active application of high-aroma varieties not only enriches the flavor choices of new-style tea beverages but also opens up new paths for the development and utilization of characteristic tea plant resources.

Besides directly applying existing high-aroma varieties, the industry has also conducted extensive innovative explorations on the “suitability for processing” of tea plant varieties. This means breaking the traditional concept that a certain variety is only suitable for processing a specific type of tea, and attempting to process it into new types of tea products different from traditional perceptions to meet the differentiated tea usage needs of new-style tea beverages. A typical example is using tea plant varieties traditionally used for making oolong tea to process black tea. Research and practice show that black tea processed from such varieties (e.g., Jin Mu Dan, Meizhan, Ya Shi Xiang Dancong) often has characteristics of prominent floral and fruity aromas and a sweet, mellow, and smooth taste, which perfectly matches the requirements of new-style tea beverages, especially fresh milk tea and fruit tea, for tea bases. For example, black tea processed from the Jin Mu Dan variety has been identified to contain key aroma components such as indole, δ-decalactone, trans-nerolidol, phenylacetaldehyde, and jasmone, giving the tea soup a unique floral and fruity charm. Light milk tea made from it (such as Guming’s “Fu Ye Luo Shui Xiang”) has a sharp aroma and mellow taste, and is well-recognized by the market. Similarly, black tea processed from the Meizhan variety exhibits obvious sweet floral aroma and smooth mouthfeel. Chabaidao uses Meizhan black tea as the base for its new-style milk tea, achieving good results with rich aroma and mellow taste. Research by Yang Yongli et al. also explored the feasibility of processing black tea from Ya Shi Xiang Dancong, finding that the finished product has significant floral, honey, and caramel aromas, with characteristic aroma substances including linalool and its oxides, dihydrolinalool, phenylacetaldehyde, furfural, methyl salicylate, and β-ionone. These innovative practices of cross-category processing have greatly expanded the possibilities of tea raw materials, providing more unique and high-quality tea base choices for new-style tea beverages.

The integration and innovation of processing technologies are also important ways to improve the quality of tea raw materials and adapt to the needs of new-style tea beverages. Researchers and production enterprises try to introduce processing techniques from different tea categories or modern physical technologies into traditional tea-making processes to achieve better flavor performance. For example, introducing the unique “shaking” technique of oolong tea into the processing of traditional Gongfu black tea was found to effectively enhance the activity of key enzymes such as polyphenol oxidase and β-glucosidase, promote the degradation of catechins, and the formation of aroma substances such as linalool, geraniol, and trans-nerolidol. The resulting black tea has a sweeter and more mellow taste, and a richer floral and fruity aroma. For oolong tea, some studies have attempted to combine infrared technology and heated withering technology in the processing of Guangdong Dancong oolong tea. The results showed that the bitterness and astringency of the finished tea were significantly reduced, and the tea soup had a longer-lasting charm. In addition, vacuum freeze-drying technology has also been introduced into the production of Tieguanyin. Research indicates that this technology can significantly increase the content of various aroma substances in the finished tea, such as linalool, ocimene, β-caryophyllene, β-humulene, nerolidol, and farnesol, thereby effectively enhancing the floral characteristics of the tea. In response to the growing demand for cold brew tea, researchers have also applied technologies such as pressure differential puffing, freezing, enzymatic hydrolysis, and ultrasound to the processing of cold brew tea, aiming to develop cold brew-specific teas that brew quickly, release flavor fully, and have excellent taste, to meet the special needs of the new-style cold brew pure tea market. The application of these integrated processing technologies demonstrates the continuous exploration and pursuit of excellence in the field of tea processing.

Refined roasting, as one of the most common and universal processing methods for improving the quality and shaping the flavor of bulk tea raw materials, also plays an important role in the development of raw materials for new-style tea beverages. By precisely controlling the temperature, time, and method of roasting, the aroma type, taste richness, and moisture content of the tea can be adjusted to better suit the specific needs of new-style tea beverages. For example, research by Qiu Fangfang et al. showed that using far-infrared roasting technology to treat Gongfu black tea can make the roasted black tea exhibit a higher sweet aroma and a fresher, more mellow taste. Weng Jingjing et al. explored a three-stage descending temperature roasting process (90℃, 80℃, 70℃) for processing Zhangping Shuixian tea cakes. They found that this refined roasting method not only increased the content of soluble sugars, water extracts, and other internal substances in the tea, while reducing caffeine and theabrownin content, thus enhancing the mellowness of the tea soup, but also significantly increased the content of various aroma substances such as dehydrolinalool, linalool, β-caryophyllene, 1-penten-3-ol, α-farnesene, n-hexanol, 2-methylbutanal, 1-ethyl-1H-pyrrole, and 2-methylfuran, imparting a rich orchid and sweet aroma to the tea. Reasonable refined roasting processes are undoubtedly a key link in optimizing tea raw materials and meeting the flavor requirements of new tea drinks.

Given the new-style tea beverage market’s persistent pursuit of “high aroma,” various scenting technologies have emerged and continue to develop. Traditional flower scenting technology, i.e., the process of using tea base to absorb the aroma of fresh flowers and then removing the flowers, has also seen innovation in the new era. For example, ZHANG et al. developed a low-temperature, long-time novel scenting process by precisely controlling the piling height and temperature/humidity during jasmine tea scenting. This not only improved the utilization rate of fresh flower aroma but also produced high-quality jasmine tea with prominent aroma and fresh taste. However, there are also many products on the market that use artificial scenting technology, i.e., directly spraying exogenous edible flavors onto the tea leaves to quickly produce flavored tea bases with distinct style characteristics, such as the common bamboo-scented oolong and white peach oolong. But with consumers’ increasing attention to natural and healthy concepts, the call for “0 artificial flavors” is growing louder, posing certain challenges to this method. Against this background, fruit-flower blending scenting technology has begun to emerge as a new direction for natural scenting. This technology involves physically mixing dried flowers (such as roses, osmanthus), dried fruits (such as peaches, strawberries), etc., directly with tea leaves, allowing the tea to naturally absorb these natural aromas during storage and use. In recent years, there has even been the addition of liquid substances such as fruit pulp/juice and natural essential oils to dry tea for blending. After the tea fully absorbs the flavor substances, it is dried again to obtain flavored tea with a more integrated and natural aroma. The evolution of these scenting technologies reflects the interaction and balance between market demand and technical means.

Blending technology plays a crucial role in the supply of raw materials for new-style tea beverages, its importance being self-evident. Through scientific and reasonable tea blending, it is possible not only to create unique tea bases that meet the specific flavor requirements of new-style tea beverages but also to effectively balance costs, stabilize quality, and ensure large-scale supply. The possibilities for blending are endless, achievable through combinations of teas with different styles, from different regions, different seasons, or even different categories. For example, Chagee once used a blend of Yunnan Dian Hong and Fujian Lapsang Souchong, two black teas with distinct styles, as the base for its “Wanshan Hong Jin Si Xiao Zhong Fresh Milk Tea,” which is claimed to have a sharp sweet aroma and rich taste. Research by Xie Jianwei et al. also explored the possibility of blending white tea and black tea, finding that the resulting blended tea base had a rich aroma and sweet, mellow taste. With technological development, intelligent and digital tea blending technologies are also beginning to emerge. For example, Li Shuhuan’s research attempted to use near-infrared spectroscopy (NIR) and hyperspectral imaging (HSI) technology to detect Keemun black tea and combine it with mathematical models to achieve accurate prediction and digital management of the blending ratios of different grades of Keemun black tea. Efficient and precise blending technology is the key support for meeting the diverse, standardized, and large-scale tea usage needs of new-style tea beverages.

Finally, to address the difficulties in standardizing on-site operations in new-style tea beverage stores and the susceptibility of product flavor to human factors, some enterprises with deep processing capabilities have begun to develop and promote “fresh extraction technology.” This technology usually refers to using water as a solvent and employing efficient extraction methods such as high-pressure jet flow to quickly extract flavor substances from tea leaves. Through special filtration and separation devices (such as basket-grid type), solid-liquid separation is achieved. The resulting tea soup is not concentrated but directly undergoes instantaneous sterilization and aseptic cold filling, ultimately producing fresh-extracted tea soup products (i.e., high-fidelity standardized tea pre-liquids) with uniform quality, high flavor restoration, and ease of storage and use. This pre-made tea soup can be directly used for modulating new tea beverage products, greatly simplifying store operation procedures, improving production efficiency, and ensuring product flavor consistency. The emergence of fresh extraction technology represents an important innovation in the field of tea deep processing to adapt to the needs of the new-style tea beverage format.

In summary, the rise of new-style tea beverages is driving comprehensive innovation in the upstream tea raw material end with unprecedented force. From the exploration of variety resources and suitability expansion, to the integration and improvement of processing technology, the deepening of refining techniques, and the evolution of scenting methods and the application of standardized technologies like blending and fresh extraction, the entire industry chain is actively responding to the call of the market, striving to provide more diverse, higher-quality, and more distinctive “ammunition” for this vibrant emerging industry.

The sudden rise of the new-style tea beverage industry is not just a revolution in the consumer field. The innovative industrial development model, unique product development concepts, and refined market operation management strategies it demonstrates all bring profound enlightenment and valuable reference value to China’s long-established traditional tea industry. Facing this vibrant emerging market with huge potential, traditional tea enterprises can no longer cling to old thinking patterns and business paths. Instead, they should actively embrace change, draw nourishment from it, and achieve their own transformation, upgrading, and sustainable development.

The primary implication is the necessity to actively embrace the market, deeply understand, and adapt to the consumer demands of the new era. As pointed out in the research, the new generation of consumers represented by “Gen Z” has become the main force in the market. Growing up in an era of information explosion and relative material abundance, their consumption concepts exhibit distinct characteristics: pursuing fashion trends and personalized expression, emphasizing emotional experience and social value in the consumption process, and being willing to pay a premium for products or services that bring pleasure and satisfaction. The new-style tea beverage industry precisely perceives and caters to these core demands of Gen Z. By creating products with high aesthetic value, strong social attributes, diverse flavors, and continuous iteration, it has successfully transformed the traditional act of drinking tea into a fashionable lifestyle, thereby winning the hearts of young consumers. Therefore, traditional tea enterprises need to humble themselves, actively approach young consumers, listen to their voices, feel their consumption scenarios and experience preferences attentively. Only then can they more profoundly understand the real tea usage needs of downstream brands (i.e., new-style tea beverage enterprises) and ultimately develop high-quality, characteristic tea raw materials that can be widely accepted and loved by the market.

Secondly, continuous and differentiated product innovation is key for traditional tea enterprises to maintain competitiveness in the new market landscape. The new-style tea beverage industry itself is built on “innovation.” It relies on the continuous launch of massive new products to build a high-quality, diversified product matrix, constantly bringing freshness to consumers. From the previous analysis, it can be seen that the market preference for “emphasizing tea aroma” has initially formed. Floral-scented teas (such as jasmine tea, gardenia tea) and niche high-aroma oolong teas with unique regional or varietal aromas (such as various Dancong teas) are hotly pursued by the market. This points out the direction of innovation for traditional tea enterprises. Enterprises need to closely follow the pulse of market demand and adhere to the path of differentiated innovation. This means not just staying at the level of producing standardized bulk raw material tea, but also deeply exploring their own resource endowments. Through developing characteristic and excellent tea plant varieties, exploring and improving innovative processing techniques, applying more precise and creative blending technologies, and other means, they must continuously develop characteristic raw material teas with typical regional, varietal, and processing aromas. This differentiated innovation can not only meet the demand of new-style tea beverages for unique flavors but also enhance the added value of tea raw materials, helping traditional tea enterprises establish unique advantages in fierce market competition.

Finally, digital transformation and upgrading are the inevitable path for traditional tea enterprises to achieve high-quality development and integrate into the new-style tea beverage supply chain system. The research by He Qunxian et al. clearly points out that digital drive has been proven to be an important way for the high-quality development of the new-style tea beverage industry. Leading tea beverage enterprises have long achieved deep digital transformation and upgrading in various aspects such as R&D, operation, marketing, and supply chain management. They use big data technology to accurately analyze consumer preferences, guide new product development, and achieve precise marketing; optimize store operation efficiency through digital systems; build efficient, stable, and transparent supply chain systems to ensure timely supply and stable quality of raw materials. However, in contrast, traditional tea enterprises, as the upstream of the new tea beverage industry, generally have a low level of digitalization. This leads to problems such as lagging information transmission, low efficiency in supply and demand matching, and difficulties in raw material traceability, which greatly reduces the operational efficiency of the supply chain from the raw material end to the market end. This not only hinders the smooth circulation of high-quality characteristic raw materials but also restricts the further healthy development of the new tea beverage industry. Therefore, traditional tea enterprises must be determined to accelerate the pace of digital transformation. This includes intelligent transformation of production links, digital management of warehousing and logistics, digital traceability of quality control systems, and more importantly, breaking down information barriers with downstream tea beverage enterprises. By sharing data, collaborative forecasting, and other methods, they need to integrate and form an efficient, intelligent, stable new-style tea beverage whole-industry-chain digital supply chain that can quickly respond to market changes. Only in this way can close linkage between upstream and downstream be truly achieved, promoting the upgrading of the entire industry.

The wave of new-style tea beverages has injected unprecedented new vitality into the ancient tea industry. It not only creates huge market increments but also profoundly changes the consumption methods, product forms, and even production models of tea with its innovative power. Through interpreting the research of He Qunxian et al., we see the diverse landscape of new-style tea beverage products, gain insight into their unique preferences for tea bases, and sort out a series of remarkable innovative practices emerging at the tea raw material end driven by the market. From the exploration of high-aroma varieties to breakthroughs in processing suitability, from the integration of processing technologies to the refinement of scenting, blending, and fresh extraction methods, all demonstrate the active efforts made by the tea industry to adapt to the new consumption era.

Looking ahead, the new-style tea beverage industry will continue to maintain a high-speed development trend, and its demand for high-quality, characteristic, and standardized tea raw materials will also continue to grow. This presents both challenges and huge opportunities for the traditional tea industry. If traditional tea enterprises can actively learn from the successful experience of new-style tea beverages, proactively embrace market changes, adhere to consumer demand orientation, continuously promote differentiated innovation in products and technologies, accelerate their own digital transformation process, and build an efficient and collaborative supply chain system with downstream industries, then the traditional tea industry can not only successfully meet the challenges but also find new growth engines in this new wave and achieve high-quality development. Ultimately, a new pattern of China’s tea industry—vibrant, innovation-driven, and closely integrated upstream and downstream—will be formed, allowing the ancient tea culture to radiate even more brilliant splendor in the new era.