Sometimes, food trends take 500 years to cross the globe. Matcha, a powdered form of green tea most often consumed as a hot beverage, has been a beloved staple in Japan since the 16th century. Fast-forward to 2025, and everyone is drinking matcha—and the Guardian reports there might be a matcha shortage on the horizon.

What’s causing the matcha shortage?

Matcha’s recent surge in popularity is largely to blame—and there are many reasons for that popularity.

For one thing, the Guardian notes that Japan is experiencing record tourism in the years since the COVID-19 pandemic, and many travelers are perhaps being exposed to matcha for the first time, establishing a greater appetite for the tea. Though it naturally has a bitter, grassy flavor, matcha blends well with various sweeteners such as honey, syrup and sweetened coconut milk.

More demand means more experimentation, so matcha now pops up in places it wouldn’t before: beverages, candy and restaurant menus.

And we can’t discount the fact that matcha is incredibly photogenic and social-media-friendly. It’s bright green and inviting, often paired with other colorful additions (look no further than Starbucks’ green-and-purple Iced Lavender Cream Oatmilk Matcha).

Matcha doesn’t have as much caffeine as a cup of coffee, so it’s a great step-down beverage for your morning routine. Green tea, in all its forms, has long been associated with good health, too. Though the evidence for such claims appears to be limited, it’s true that matcha is rich in antioxidants.

Taken together, all these attributes mean that demand has spiked, and supply hasn’t been able to keep up.

As Forbes reported last year, matcha must be grown in very specific conditions within a limited timeframe, so it’s not as simple as ramping up production. Unexpected weather can also make a dent in the growing season, and the processing time—grinding all the tea leaves into matcha’s fine powder form—is extensive and handled largely by independent farms.

Forbes notes that farmers across Asia and the United States have started growing matcha to meet demand. Whether its quality will match that of Japan’s, where the tradition is 500 years strong, remains to be seen.