THE good news:
No, you don’t need specific authorization to sell tea in France.
But that doesn’t mean you don’t have to do anything.
There are a few rules to be aware of:
- You must have a legal status to sell tea and run a legit business,
- You must respect the legal information on your packets,
- And if you’re selling organic tea, you may need to notify and certify your activity in France.
No panic, I’ll explain it simply.
You must first set up your business to sell tea in France.
Whether you’re opening a physical store, an e-shop or selling at markets, you need to have a legal status. In France, you have several options:
- Auto-entrepreneur: simple, fast, but with a limited turnover per year.
- Société (SAS, SARL, etc.): if you want to think big.
- Entreprise Individuelle: if you want to avoid too much paperwork and complexity at first.
Once you’ve registered your business, you’ll have a SIRET number, which you’ll need if you want to sell tea and herbal teas legally.
Perhaps you already have a company and want to expand your business? No worries, but remember to update your company’s object in your bylaws to include tea sales.
Labeling to sell tea and herbal teas.
In France, tea and herbal tea labels must comply with certain rules. These include:
- Mention the list of ingredients (including flavors, if any),
- Highlight allergenic ingredients,
- Indicate net weight,
- Be written in French,
- Mention a Best Before Date and batch number,
- Where applicable, display the tea’s country of origin,
- Do not use misleading health claims,
- If organic, add official logos,
- etc.
Please note: 1. the above list is not exhaustive, and 2. I don’t do legal advice. If you want to be sure of all your legal obligations, please consult the current legislation and/or a specialist.
There are some good sources of information online, such as this page from the French Ministry of the Economy.
And remember, we’re only talking about France. If your products are distributed in another country like Switzerland or Belgium, your packages must comply with their legislation.
Rules if you sell organic tea in France.
Depending on your business’ situation, you may be exempt from organic certification. I wrote an article a few weeks ago which explains in which cases you have to be organic certified. I recommend it.
But if you have to be certified organic, note that you’ll need to:
- Notify your activity to the Agence Bio (free of charge),
- Contact a certification body such as ECOCERT,
- Have yourself audited annually (fee).
Summary
Selling tea in France isn’t complicated, but there are a few rules to follow. Set up your own business, respect labeling standards, and potentially get the organic certification.
Once these basics are in place, you’ll be able to concentrate on the essentials: selling your tea and herbal teas.
