Rooibos
Also known as Red bush tea
Brewed from a shrub that grows naturally only around the Cederberg, rooibos became the first African food with EU protected designation of origin status.
- TraditionCederberg and Khoi and San heritage
- Kind of dishDrinks
- SeasonAll year
- OccasionAny day of the week
The leaves of Aspalathus linearis oxidise during processing and turn from green to deep amber, and unoxidised green rooibos is also sold. The shrub grows naturally only in the Cederberg and surrounding areas north-west of Cape Town, where summers are hot and dry and the soil is coarse and sandy.
The tea contains no caffeine. South Africans traditionally drink it hot with milk and sugar or honey, while many people abroad take it plain, and it is also served iced and used in cooking.
Communities in the Cederberg brewed rooibos for centuries before it became a commercial crop. In 2019 the industry signed a benefit-sharing agreement recognising the Khoi and San as holders of that traditional knowledge, and in 2021 rooibos became the first African food to gain protected designation of origin status in the European Union.
Check out these sources
- Frequently asked questions · SA Rooibos Council
- South African rooibos makes list of EU's protected designations · SAnews
- Payment of benefits from rooibos to San and Khoi communities a milestone for industrywide collaboration · Department of Forestry, Fisheries and the Environment
