Japan Matcha Desk Research from Japan for matcha buyers in Europe

Japan's powdered green tea exports to the UK, Germany and Czechia, last 12 months

Monthly Japan Sourcing Brief, sample pageData to September 2026Prepared 5 November 2026

9,320 tWorld total, Oct 2025 to Sep 2026
9.7%Germany's share, the largest in Europe
5.5%United Kingdom's share
¥13.4k/kgUK average export value, against ¥9.5k for Germany

Monthly export volume and average export value

CountryOct 25NovDecJan 26FebMarAprMayJunJulAugSep 2612 months
United Kingdom tonnes
59.1
40.9
42.7
53.5
40.0
59.2
18.1
31.6
42.2
40.6
36.9
43.3
508
¥ thousand per kg13.212.612.712.511.614.015.911.513.714.713.216.213.4
Germany tonnes
47.8
61.0
68.4
72.2
85.1
107.0
75.0
89.4
72.4
98.6
66.6
57.7
901
¥ thousand per kg9.39.49.19.78.09.68.69.010.28.912.011.29.5
Czechia tonnes
8.1
7.6
1.7
4.2
4.2
4.1
8.8
2.9
4.7
8.6
9.8
10.7
75
¥ thousand per kg12.712.314.712.211.012.210.513.311.111.515.113.712.5

Source: Ministry of Finance Japan, Trade Statistics (via e-Stat), export codes 0902.10-100 and 0902.20-100 (“green tea, powdered”, packed in containers of 3 kg or less, and bulk; Japan has no separate code for matcha). Figures for 2026 are preliminary and may be revised. Shipments under ¥200,000 are not recorded. Exports to a hub country may be re-shipped elsewhere in Europe. Value is FOB in yen.

Supply status: what Japanese producers have announced

Producer or regionWhat was announcedDate
Marukyu Koyamaen (Uji, Kyoto)Matcha limited to one item per customer at its five directly-run shopsfrom Mar 2025
Fukujuen (Kyoto)Not accepting new wholesale applications for matchachecked Nov 2026
Ippodo (Kyoto)Discontinued six bancha-type products: farms have switched leaf to matcha raw material (Kyoto tea market, first-flush average in 2025: tencha ¥14,144/kg vs bancha ¥1,225/kg)Mar 2026
Hoshino Seichaen (Yame, Fukuoka)Matcha raw material in short supply; matcha orders by phone onlychecked Nov 2026
Kagoshima PrefectureTwo new tencha factories started in Apr 2026; a new grinding plant planned for 2027. Kagoshima was Japan's largest tencha producer in 2025 (2,670 t)Aug 2026 report

Kyoto's first tencha auction of 2026 averaged ¥14,127/kg, up from ¥8,235/kg in 2025 (trade press). Sources for each line are listed in the full brief. Not legal or trading advice.

The full monthly brief adds supplier-by-supplier status (MOQ, lead time, allocation, small lots for overseas buyers), how to read a Japanese COA against EU and GB residue limits, organic paperwork (COI), and regulatory changes with deadlines. For the latest edition, write to [email protected].