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Decaf, Caffeine-Free, and Non-Caffeinated: Understanding the Labels on Tea’s Caffeine Content

When watching commercials for tea or coffee, you might notice a growing interest in caffeine. Today, let’s discuss the somewhat confusing labels related to caffeine in tea.

In Japan, there are currently no guidelines for caffeine labeling on tea, but I’d like to clarify the general usage of caffeine-related labels for tea.

Caffeine labels on tea can be broadly categorized into two types:

Labels indicating that the caffeine has been reduced:

Decaf (short for decaffeinated) – a term indicating that caffeine has been removed.
Caffeine-free
Caffeine-less

Labels indicating that no caffeine is present:

Non-caffeine
Caffeine zero

Sometimes, products that have undergone caffeine reduction might use a combination of these labels.
Example: Decaf + Non-caffeine

Since there are currently no guidelines for caffeine labeling on tea in Japan, labels such as “Decaf,” “Caffeine-free,” and “Caffeine-less” might indicate either a small reduction in caffeine or a complete removal of caffeine to 0%. It’s quite surprising, isn’t it?
(Note: Coffee has specific labeling regulations based on the “Fair Competition Code for Coffee Beverage Labels.”)

In many cases, you can check the caffeine content or the percentage of caffeine removed on the manufacturer’s website, so it’s a good idea to look up this information if you are concerned about caffeine.