Bye bye builders' brew! The traditional cuppa is losing popularity as trendy herbal teas are now the favourite among young consumers

Next time you offer your guest a cuppa be sure to have a fully stocked cupboard as traditional English Breakfast may not be their cup of tea.

Britons are increasingly turning to alternative herbal brews in the belief that they are healthier than the traditional tea bag.

While sales of ordinary black tea bags have dropped by nearly five per cent in the past year, demand for green tea has rocketed by eight per cent.

Fans of the fruit and herbal infusions are opting for upmarket brands such as Twinings, Teapigs and Clipper and the biggest buyers are younger consumers who see them as beneficial for health and wellbeing.

Over the past two years more traditional tea brands such as PG Tips, Tetley and Taylors have now introduced fruit, green, herbal and decaffeinated teas to their range to cater for the nation's evolving taste in tea

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PG Tips, Britain's biggest tea brand, says health concerns and the average age of tea drinkers is driving a decline in sales of traditional builders' tea.

Kate Tilbury, head of beverages at PG Tips' owner Unilever adds that customers are opting for news flavours to make their drinking experience more interesting.

'The health issue is the most overriding trend. We need to drink a certain amount every day and there's a finite amount people will drink, so people switch beverages.'

Health worries are also driving up sales of decaffeinated tea, which have risen in value by 5.1 per cent in the past year.

Andrew Pearl, of tea giant Tetley, told The Grocer magazine that many of the newly popular teas offer health benefits that young people are seeking.

'The focus on healthy living is benefiting segments such as green and redbush.'

Zoe Taphouse, of Twinings, added that although their loyalty remains with the traditional cuppa they are well aware of the demand for new exotic brews.

'Today's tea consumers are looking for more from their daily cup. For us, traditional tea will always be loved and have a rightful place in the heart of the nation, but we are also taking tea on a journey that will create a new generation of tea lovers and demonstrate tea's role as a contemporary drink of choice.'

Despite the new interest in herbal teas the traditional cup of char still counts for the lions share of the market, with sales of £415 million, compared to about £230 million for all other types of tea.

One traditional tea brand that is benefiting from the change in tastes is Yorkshire Tea, whose stronger tasting brew has seen sales rise by a massive 66 per cent in the past five years.

Paula Goude, of Taylors of Harrogate which makes Yorkshire Tea, says that the brand is going from strength to strength.

'It has continued to grow in a declining market through its quirky advertising and tie-ups with the English Cricket Board.

'This activity has introduced 733,000 new households to the brand in the past year.'

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