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Contribute to ESG Just by Drinking: The Challenge of 'ChaaS,' a New Service to Save Declining Tea Fields[ICT Startup League 2025 Member Interview: Blue Farm Inc.]
For the Japanese people, "tea" holds a special place, deeply rooted in life and culture. A cup after a meal, a gesture of hospitality for guests, a moment to relax. Tea has always been a part of our daily lives. But now, the entire "tea industry" that produces it is facing a silent crisis.
It's not that overall demand for Japanese tea, like green tea, has plummeted; in fact, its popularity overseas is growing due to a global health trend. What plagues the tea industry within Japan is its aging workforce, a lack of successors, and low profitability.
Tackling this problem is Blue Farm Inc., a Shizuoka-based startup. CEO Daisuke Aoki was born into a tea-farming family in Shizuoka with a history spanning about 300 years. After completing graduate school, he worked for the holding company of a major telecommunications construction firm. However, believing "it is my mission to connect the tea industry to the future," he founded Blue Farm in 2021.
The business he launched is "ChaaS (Tea Field as a Service)," a corporate sustainability improvement service utilizing tea fields. Its key feature is that companies can help meet modern sustainability disclosure requirements simply by switching their in-house beverages to tea harvested from ChaaS fields.
We spoke with Mr. Aoki about the details of the ChaaS service and the future Blue Farm envisions for tea fields.
A panoramic view of the tea garden. We are working to balance the conservation of regional resources and the environment by cultivating organic tea leaves in harmony with the beautiful natural surroundings.A "Tea Field" Service, Not a "Tea" Service: Environmental Value Created Just by Drinking
Your business connects drinking tea to corporate sustainability reporting. Could you explain specifically what kind of service it is?
Aoki: In recent years, many large corporations worldwide have been required to address ESG. This is because many institutional investors are focusing on ESG investing, and it's no exaggeration to say that "if you don't address ESG, you won't receive investment."
"ESG" stands for E for "Environment," S for "Social," and G for "Governance." So, we're in an era where companies can't get investment unless they operate with consideration for environmental, social, and human rights issues.
Aoki: Yes. In terms of environmental issues, the TCFD (Task Force on Climate-related Financial Disclosures) and CDP (an NGO that scores companies' environmental measures) are symbolic, but we live in an age where sustainability reporting is essentially mandatory for large corporations.
How does that connect to ChaaS?
Aoki: The problem for large companies in ESG compliance is the limited number of solutions. For example, switching to renewable energy has high generation costs. Utilizing carbon credits involves a lot of man-hours to implement the system.
So even if they want to address ESG, it's hard to find the right solution for each company because the burden is too great.
Aoki: ChaaS was conceived as a service to solve that problem. First, the tea we produce is grown using organic, low-environmental-impact methods. We've also installed a system in the tea fields to measure carbon absorption, greenhouse gas reduction effects, and more. In other words, we are visualizing the "environmental value" created by the tea fields. Then, we have large companies that buy commercial tea or water for their meeting rooms switch to tea from our fields. By doing so, they are simply using tea in-house as they always have, but as a result, they are also implementing ESG measures.
So for a company, they can meet ESG requirements just by changing the tea they buy for the office to ChaaS tea. Not having to make new capital investments or develop new business lines must be a huge benefit in terms of cost.
Aoki: On top of that, ChaaS provides a dashboard where companies can easily check the environmental value, such as GHG reductions, generated from their consumption of ChaaS tea. We designed the dashboard so that when companies create sustainability reports, they can just copy and paste a screenshot of the dashboard directly into their materials.
I see. Now I clearly understand why ChaaS is a "corporate sustainability improvement service utilizing tea fields" rather than just producing and selling tea.
Aoki: Exactly. That's why it's a "tea field" service, not a "tea" service.
Managing tea leaves in the organic tea garden. An initiative to grow high-quality tea leaves while protecting the natural environment.The Three Reasons for Seizing the "Now or Never" Moment to Launch
The business proposal adopted by the ICT Startup League includes research to further enhance the environmental value of "tea fields," correct?
Aoki: We plan to further evolve the measurement system we're currently using, using IoT sensors to understand soil characteristics and verifying how improving the soil environment based on that data positively impacts biodiversity conservation. By providing this new environmental value data to companies, I believe we can increase the profitability of the ChaaS business.
The potential of tea fields is still vast.
Aoki: There are many possibilities in the "menu" that tea fields can offer, such as generating renewable energy through agri-voltaics (solar sharing), utilizing human resources through agriculture-welfare collaborations like hiring people with disabilities, and conserving water sources by expanding organic tea fields.
Naturally, this would also increase service fees, so realizing these "possibilities" will steadily improve the profitability of ChaaS and, by extension, the tea industry. This will help save the "Japanese tea industry" from its crisis. You mentioned that "it is my mission to connect the tea industry to the future." Have you felt that way since you were young?
Aoki: Yes, I have. When I was in my teens, the decline of the tea fields in my hometown (Fujieda City) had already begun, so I felt a sense that "something must be done."
You first joined a major telecommunications construction company. Was that choice made with the future succession of the tea business in mind?
Aoki: Generally, the theory for expanding a business is to choose a growing field with a large market size. However, the domestic tea industry, including in Shizuoka, was a shrinking market. This meant a different method, a different approach, was necessary. I knew I wanted to first work in an industry where I could acquire those kinds of skills.
Amidst that, you founded Blue Farm in 2021 and started ChaaS. Could you tell us about the background behind that idea?
Aoki: During my time as a corporate employee, I was in charge of IR (Investor Relations) for a period, where I gained experience in ESG investment correspondence and capital policy. I was also seconded to a group company where I was involved in investment projects for renewable energy and data centers, learning firsthand how to create mechanisms that balance the environment and the economy. After that, I also had the opportunity to study business administration and accounting abroad. I believe these experiences form the background from which the ChaaS idea emerged.
Did you have other ideas for reviving the tea industry?
Aoki: I had been thinking about various things since I was young, but I was hesitant, wondering if they would be viable as businesses. But with ChaaS, I felt "this could work."
So that became the moment to start the business.
Aoki: I had been watching for the right time to tackle the tea industry. There are three reasons I founded Blue Farm in 2021. First, seeing the continuous decline of tea fields and the increase in abandoned farmland, I felt that if I didn't act now, it would be too late. Second, as a backdrop for making the ChaaS idea a viable business, global enthusiasm for ESG investing was high, and development costs for sensors and systems had come down. And third, ESG compliance was beginning to become an urgent issue for Japanese companies.
Being born into a tea-farming family and having been involved in ESG compliance early in your career, perhaps only you could have seen that timing. Plus, that third reason is equivalent to untapped demand, which feels like a chance for the shrinking tea industry to revive. But why did the tea industry decline in the first place?
Aoki: The total demand for tea itself hasn't changed that much. However, compared to 20 years ago, the ratio of bottle consumption versus leaf consumption—meaning, drinking from containers like PET bottles versus brewing tea in a teapot—has reversed. The tea industry was centered on tea leaves for brewing, so it fell behind regions that primarily produce leaves used for bottled tea. Furthermore, tea distribution is old-fashioned, and producers are in a weak position. As a result, it's not profitable even if you produce tea. A lack of successors is cited as a reason for the decline, but there are actually quite a few people who want to work in or take over tea farms. However, in many cases, their parents stop them, saying, "You shouldn't do it; it's not profitable." As a result, young people aren't entering the industry, the workforce is aging, and abandoned farmland is increasing. That's the current situation.
Conversely, if you can increase the profitability of the tea industry, the successor shortage can be solved. "ChaaS" seems like it will be a vital service for the future of the tea industry.
As a sustainable solution for companies, we introduce our products and activities at exhibitions and events to broaden understanding and empathy.Passing Down Veteran Farmers' Knowledge with AI: The Future of Tea Fields That Lowers the Barrier to Entry
"ChaaS" seems full of potential in its innovation, versatility, and significance. However, I imagine the hurdles are quite high for gaining understanding and promoting adoption in the aging and declining tea industry. What are your thoughts?
Aoki: IoT sensors automatically verify soil conditions and biodiversity, accumulating data. This means it can be systematized, so producers can adopt it just by continuing to grow tea as they always have.
What about responding to new people who want to enter farming?
Aoki: Right now, ChaaS is measuring various data, including the organic farming work data of veteran producers. We are accumulating this data and, in the future, we envision linking IoT sensors with AI to issue work instructions.
So, like, "The soil is in this condition, so please spread C grams of fertilizer A in location B at X time"?
Aoki: Yes. Organic tea cultivation only accounts for about 5% of the entire tea industry, so expanding it broadly has its difficulties. But the goal is to make it possible by simply following the instructions on the ChaaS app, allowing even people with no knowledge of the tea industry to start farming smoothly. It might feel restrictive, like being monitored, but in return, we aim to buy the tea they produce at about twice the market price.
I see. That is appealing.
Aoki: However, the reality is that some producers find it difficult to visualize the ChaaS service. Even if they initially agree with the idea, we've had cases where it doesn't lead to adoption. I anticipated this, so I actually had my younger brother start farming when I founded the company. I felt it was important not just to propose ChaaS, but to actually get our hands dirty and produce results ourselves. Ultimately, if you don't do it yourself, you can't get others to do it. That's how we're gradually building recognition.
An IoT sensor installed in the tea garden. It visualizes greenhouse gas data and supports sustainable tea garden management.Rooted in His Grandfather's Way of Life: The Roadmap for a "Mission" to Save the Entire Tea Industry
What do you find appealing about the ICT Startup League, and what are your expectations?
Aoki: ChaaS currently faces two major challenges. The first, which we touched on earlier, is the barrier to getting people to understand the ChaaS concept. We've taken measures like naming the service 'ChaaS,' designing the tea bottles, and creating the dashboard, but I feel we need to communicate the service even more clearly. In that respect, at the ICT Startup League, we can receive advice from various perspectives and be offered solutions from people we might never have expected to meet. I watched the value-up sessions for other companies and saw that this effect is significant, so I have high expectations.
And the second challenge?
Aoki: Currently, it's mainly large corporations that are required to address ESG urgently. Getting them to adopt ChaaS requires a high level of credibility. Media coverage is important for that, so we would be grateful for any good opportunities. In that sense, being part of a program promoted by the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications—by the government, in other words—is a huge advantage in terms of credibility.
Lastly, you said "it is my mission to connect the tea industry to the future." On the other hand, you were also working successfully at a major corporation as a businessman. You had a path in life that didn't involve the tea industry, so why did you come to feel such a strong sense of "mission" for it?
Aoki: I think my grandfather's influence is a big part of it. Tea was originally processed by hand-rolling, which was an artisanal skill. But as machine processing became common, the hand-rolling technique died out. Amidst this, my grandfather saw cultural value in the hand-rolling technique, worked to preserve hand-rolling skills from various regions, and himself became a holder of Intangible Cultural Property for hand-rolled tea production. If something has value for society as a whole, you take action to preserve it. I want to live my life like my grandfather did.
ChaaS is truly a business that gives social value to tea fields. There is certainly great significance in preserving it.
Aoki: To put it bluntly, if it were just about my family, we could make a living just by continuing the tea business in the traditional way. But if that's all, it won't survive as one of Shizuoka's industries. That's not what I am meant to do. Wanting to do something for the tea fields and the entire tea industry is why I feel it's a "mission," not just a "dream."
Left: The corporate sustainable beverage 'SUSTEA.' Offered in an aluminum can, it delivers an experience with environmental value.Right: The corporate dashboard. It visualizes the tea garden's greenhouse gases and environmental value, allowing companies to confirm the effects of their sustainable measures.
Editor's Postscript
"The gap between a declining traditional industry and society's need for environmental value. That is why I started this challenge," says Aoki. What left an impression was how he had his family member start farming, thereby demonstrating the content and results of the ChaaS business to the local industry. It's likely that understanding spread precisely because he took risks and got his own hands dirty.
"When you actually look at the tea industry, you feel there is still room for improvements in efficiency, like mechanization and systematization."
If he can achieve and promote that as well, the gateway for aspiring farmers will widen even further. This interview made me look forward to seeing the Japanese tea industry 10 or 20 years from now.
■ICT Startup League
This is a support program launched in FY2023, originating from the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications' "Startup-driven Seed-stage R&D Support Project."
The ICT Startup League supports startups through four pillars.
①R&D Funding / Hands-on Support
Up to 20 million yen in R&D funding is provided as a subsidy. Additionally, through hands-on support, the selection committee members who selected the League Members stay with them after selection to promote their growth. For companies that the committee members evaluated as "absolutely want to select," a support system, much like "cheering for a favorite," is established where the evaluators themselves provide ongoing support, such as advice on business plans and offering growth opportunities.
②Discovery & Development
We provide opportunities for learning and networking to promote the business growth of League Members.
We also work to discover individuals aiming to start businesses, aiming to expand the base.
③Competition & Co-creation
It provides a place for positive competition, like a sports league, where startups learn together and challenge each other, winning the amount of funding they truly need (up to 20 million yen). We also provide a place for co-creation, where League Members can collaborate and expand their businesses through various opportunities, such as sessions with the selection committee.
④Promotion
We promote the initiatives of League Members in collaboration with the media! By making their business known to many people, we aim to expand opportunities for new matching and chances.
■Related Websites
Blue Farm Inc.
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Blue Farm Inc. (LEAGUE MEMBER)
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ICT Startup League
