Have you heard of matcha? It may be popular in Tamil Nadu as a term of endearment. But, as leaves used for green tea from Japan that’s mostly sold in powdered form, it seems to have caught on. Even Starbucks has a matcha drink in its familiar green colour. Is it good? Is it tasty? Who can tell? One just hears about the myriad of health benefits, including being rich in antioxidants, that have given it the status of “superfood”. Some might even be drinking it in hopes of losing weight. Fingers crossed.
But, do more opportunities lie here? Is there a role they could play in killing cancer? That’s a pretty big ask.
There’s a UK university that thinks that green tea could deal with something so macabre. Cancer’s said to be pretty scary, which is why researchers are trying to even use AI to solve cancer. Even traditional treatment can be worrisome. Think Walter White having to undergo chemotherapy, which has some worrisome side effects, including hair loss, nausea and weakened immunity.
So, instead of radiation, why not leverage something natural and “dietary”? Is it even possible?
According to the study, it’s said that matcha green tea can impact the metabolic processes of aggressive cancer cells, which could render them inactive and stop the spread. The idea is to starve the cancer cell the energy needed to grow and spread. Sounds like a great idea, but, maybe, more studies are required. Though, the possibilities may be tantalizing.
The need’s certainly there. It’s said that there are about 1.4 million new cancer cases every year in India.
2018 was a couple of years ago, but as of that year, close to 165,000 women were newly diagnosed with breast cancer. That’s a lot of cancer. There’s already been some cultural inclination towards Ayurveda in India. So, if matcha’s cancer-fighting properties are validated, maybe, it’d fit right in with the current alternative therapies adopted.
Maybe, turmeric, which has some anti-inflammatory properties, will be mixed with matcha to create a Justice League of superfood. Or do two rights make a wrong?
Many people have heard of pharmaceuticals, but there’s a marketing term for supplements or foods that have medical or health benefits called “nutraceuticals”. Matcha technically falls under the nutraceutical category, so, maybe the pharma folks might look at this to develop matcha-based nutraceuticals.
In theory, that could mean a new direction in preventive healthcare, as opposed to the reactive healthcare you know and love. But, then again, maybe, the system wants people broken, so that it can fix them. More cheddar that way.
Though, could matcha-based oncology supplements make their way into India? Could we see matcha-based formulations developed with test tubes and Bunsen burners by scientists with goggles? The Indian health and wellness market size was said to have reached close to $160 billion in 2024, so this may pique some interest. Maybe, a The Whole Truth-esque brand might incorporate matcha into its bars and protein powders. Maybe, a Minimalist-esque brand would infuse it into its skincare products. Or maybe, it could be one of the ingredients in your multivitamin tablets.
India’s said to be the world’s second-largest producer of tea, but the black version and some green tea, too. Could India become a matcha producer? Could Assam or Darjeeling soon be producing high-quality matcha tea? Those regions might have a suitable climate to grow matcha. If Japan dominates the matcha industry and exports the leaf at premium prices, could India’s AgriTech industry figure out a way to become the next big exporter of matcha in a more cost-effective manner, while still maintaining super high quality?
There’s something called shade-grown tea, where tea plants are cultivated under partial shade, which is how you get that umami and slightly-bitter matcha flavour profile in your cup. What would AgriTech need to do to get shade-growing cool in India? Scaling that would mean high initial costs, but AgriTech investment could cover that. Maybe, one of India’s existing tea cooperatives would want to go the Matcha route.
And if there’s a premium with these matcha-based products, would India be willing to pay? Surely, its consumers would be inclined towards something herbal and plant-based, compared to its Western counterparts? Matcha might be a natural fit.
Of course, all of this is thinking too far ahead. Sure, matcha may have a whole host of benefits, but saying with certainty that matcha would be a cancer-fighting agent might take more time, trials and scientific validation. And if there’s overpromising, when it comes to nutraceutical claims, maybe, there could be problems there. Plus, it’s not like matcha is the first superfood to rear its head in India. Remember Goji berries? Where did that go? Maybe, it was too expensive to sustain mass adoption in India.
For all these D2C brands and pharma companies to leverage matcha, some BioTech startup would have to have rock-solid research and solid funding. It’s a canary in a coal mine situation. No startup may want to be that dog they shot into space. But, will matcha be positioned and marketed as a wellness product or a miracle cancer cure? Would the startup have to go to Shark Tank India to get that mass adoption and love?
So, here’s the tea. Will India have to wait oolong time to turn over a new leaf?
