![\"\"](\"http:\/\/dngeg6k1ej-flywheel.netdna-ssl.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/10\/dragons-Den-judges-e1508441371698.jpg\")
<\/p>\nSAINT JOHN \u2013 Tracy and Rory Bell have honed a successful pitch for\u00a0Millennia Tea<\/a>.<\/h4>\n\nPioneers of a flash-frozen tea line that best preserves its antioxidant qualities, the entrepreneurs from Saint John (via Dieppe) impressed renowned tea experts and writers from around the world at an international tea expo in Las Vegas in the spring.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt was fascinating to go to the premiere convention in the world for high-end teas, and watch expert after expert after expert come by our booth and discover something new about tea,\u201d\u00a0Tracy told Huddle<\/a>\u00a0earlier this year.<\/p>\nNow they just have to win over the judges at\u00a0Dragons\u2019 Den<\/a>.<\/p>\nThe Bells taped an episode earlier this year. We\u2019ll know the result when the\u00a0show airs November 16 at 8 pm on CBC Television.<\/p>\n
\n![\"\"](\"http:\/\/dngeg6k1ej-flywheel.netdna-ssl.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/10\/Rory-and-Tracy-Bell-Dragons-Den-1-200x300.jpg\")
<\/p>\n
Rory and Tracy Bell pitch the judges on Dragons<\/p>\n<\/div>\n
In the meantime, the Bells have been ramping up their business. What began as a global search for antioxidant teas in response to a cancer-scare in the family (which fortunately turned out to false) has turned into the Bells\u2019 new business\u2013 a line of teas produced with an innovative flash-freezing method that preserves the freshness of freshly picked leaves.<\/p>\n
They incorporated Millennia in the spring of 2016, sourced tea leaves in the U.S. near flash-freezing facilities and hired bioscientists to conduct lab tests to make sure their theory was credible, and \u201cit was,\u201d said Tracy in our earlier interview with Huddle.Their flash-freezing method, she said, produces tea with four times the level of EGCG antioxidants as you would find in a conventionally produced white tea.<\/p>\n
\n![\"\"](\"http:\/\/dngeg6k1ej-flywheel.netdna-ssl.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/10\/Tumoi-Teas-225x300.jpg\")
<\/p>\n
Picking tea leaves at Tumoi Teas in Kenya. Image: submitted.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n
They have since searched the globe, with the help of an international food broker, for the best source of tea leaves. They recently found the right partner in Boaz Katah, a tea grower who works with\u00a0Tumoi Teas<\/a>, a collective of farmers in Kenya that grow and hand-pick, pesticide-free tea leaves.<\/p>\n\u201cHe works with a coop of farmers who hand-pick the leaves in the gorgeous highlands that border Kenya\u2019s famous Great Rift Valley,\u201d said Tracy in a recent e-mail. \u201cBoaz is excited to be part of our project because we\u2019re processing tea in a way that\u2019s radically different from what the rest of the industry is doing.\u201d<\/p>\n
Millennia will be releasing two new teas from the Kenyan growers this November \u2013 Fresh-leaf Kenya Green and Fresh-leaf Kenya Purple. Tracy said the leaves were hand-picked just last week.<\/p>\n
The Bells long-term plan is to sell their teas through a network of North American retailers. They already sell their teas in\u00a0Locavore Caf\u00e9<\/a>\u00a0in Saint John and have added\u00a0Simply for Life<\/a>\u00a0locations as well.<\/p>\nMillennia will also do direct-to-consumer sales over the internet, a service they hope to have in place by December.<\/p>\n
RELATED<\/strong>:\u00a0Millennia Takes Tea Back to its Roots with Products Made From Fresh-Picked Leaves<\/a><\/p>\n
Pioneers of a flash-frozen tea line that best preserves its antioxidant qualities, the entrepreneurs from Saint John (via Dieppe) impressed renowned tea experts and writers from around the world at an international tea expo in Las Vegas in the spring.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt was fascinating to go to the premiere convention in the world for high-end teas, and watch expert after expert after expert come by our booth and discover something new about tea,\u201d\u00a0Tracy told Huddle<\/a>\u00a0earlier this year.<\/p>\n Now they just have to win over the judges at\u00a0Dragons\u2019 Den<\/a>.<\/p>\n The Bells taped an episode earlier this year. We\u2019ll know the result when the\u00a0show airs November 16 at 8 pm on CBC Television.<\/p>\n Rory and Tracy Bell pitch the judges on Dragons<\/p>\n<\/div>\n In the meantime, the Bells have been ramping up their business. What began as a global search for antioxidant teas in response to a cancer-scare in the family (which fortunately turned out to false) has turned into the Bells\u2019 new business\u2013 a line of teas produced with an innovative flash-freezing method that preserves the freshness of freshly picked leaves.<\/p>\n They incorporated Millennia in the spring of 2016, sourced tea leaves in the U.S. near flash-freezing facilities and hired bioscientists to conduct lab tests to make sure their theory was credible, and \u201cit was,\u201d said Tracy in our earlier interview with Huddle.Their flash-freezing method, she said, produces tea with four times the level of EGCG antioxidants as you would find in a conventionally produced white tea.<\/p>\n Picking tea leaves at Tumoi Teas in Kenya. Image: submitted.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n They have since searched the globe, with the help of an international food broker, for the best source of tea leaves. They recently found the right partner in Boaz Katah, a tea grower who works with\u00a0Tumoi Teas<\/a>, a collective of farmers in Kenya that grow and hand-pick, pesticide-free tea leaves.<\/p>\n \u201cHe works with a coop of farmers who hand-pick the leaves in the gorgeous highlands that border Kenya\u2019s famous Great Rift Valley,\u201d said Tracy in a recent e-mail. \u201cBoaz is excited to be part of our project because we\u2019re processing tea in a way that\u2019s radically different from what the rest of the industry is doing.\u201d<\/p>\n Millennia will be releasing two new teas from the Kenyan growers this November \u2013 Fresh-leaf Kenya Green and Fresh-leaf Kenya Purple. Tracy said the leaves were hand-picked just last week.<\/p>\n The Bells long-term plan is to sell their teas through a network of North American retailers. They already sell their teas in\u00a0Locavore Caf\u00e9<\/a>\u00a0in Saint John and have added\u00a0Simply for Life<\/a>\u00a0locations as well.<\/p>\n Millennia will also do direct-to-consumer sales over the internet, a service they hope to have in place by December.<\/p>\n RELATED<\/strong>:\u00a0Millennia Takes Tea Back to its Roots with Products Made From Fresh-Picked Leaves<\/a><\/p>\n<\/p>\n<\/p>\n