Is Ilan Style genuinely Indigenous owned?

Yes! Ilan Style was founded and is owned by Kerry Arabena, a proud Meriam woman from the Island of Mer (sometimes referred to as Murray Island) in the Torres Strait. Our business (Weyarn) is Supply Nation Certified, which is the highest level achievable for an indigenous business. Supply Nation Registration means the business is vetted independently to ensure they are (and always remain) Indigenous owned and operated. Our customers can take comfort in knowing there is no black-cladding with Ilan Style!

How sustainable is Ilan Style packaging?

Very! Other products often come packaged without much care for recycling, or the environment, or businesses do bare minimum to tick a box. As customers, we can also find it difficult to tell what packaging is recyclable and what isn’t. That’s why Ilan Style voluntarily joined APCO (the Australian Packaging Covenant Organisation) to ensure we do everything possible to achieve sustainable and recyclable packaging, with full accountability. Founder Kerry is an environmental scientist - so sustainability is very close to our team’s heart!

Instead of choosing cheaper boxes or bags for our tea, we chose screw top tins - because we’d love our customers to find another use for the packaging once the tea is finished. You can reuse your tins on everything from organising hair ties, to planting succulents! And if the tins do ever reach the end of their life, they can be recycled efficiently. You may also notice a cork wad inside the tin lid, this ensures the tea stays fresh. Normally these gussets are made from plastic, but we have a strict no-single use plastic policy for our products, so we chose the more challenging option in recyclable cork. Even the plastic inner bag is made from certified home-compostable NatureFlex material. So our customers can take comfort - we live our values and there is no greenwashing here!

Do Ilan Style teas contain gluten?

No, all variants are gluten free. We recommend taking care if you are hyper-sensitive to allergens. Ilan Style teas are packed in a facility which also processes ingredients containing gluten, dairy and tree nuts.

Do Ilan Style teas contain dairy?

No, all variants are dairy free (and suitable for Vegan diets). We recommend taking care if you are hyper-sensitive to allergens. Ilan Style teas are packed in a facility which also processes ingredients containing gluten, dairy and tree nuts.

Do Ilan Style teas contain caffeine?

Only one! Ilan Gratitude, Tropical Breakfast includes Australian black tea for a gentle kick-start to the day. All other variants are caffeine free.

Are Ilan Style teas suitable for Vegans?

Yes! Our teas are proudly plant based. Which may seem obvious but is not always the case - some herbal teas contain ingredients such as honey or milk, or preservatives and colours which are not vegan.

Do Ilan Style teas contain any artificial colours, flavours or preservatives?

No way! Our teas are formulated by our very own Naturopath, with a no-nasties policy. We ensure all ingredients bring maximal health benefits, without compromise!

Do Ilan Style teas contain any added sugar?

No way! Unlike so many other herbal teas commercially available - our teas are formulated by our very own Naturopath, with a no-nasties policy. We ensure all ingredients bring maximal health benefits, without compromise, and that means no added sugar!

Are Ilan Style teas certified organic?

No. You will notice our tea blends have multiple ingredients and most (but not all) are organically produced. Many of the native ingredients are organic because they are wild-grown and harvested. Perfectly adapted to Aussie growing conditions, which means there is no need for chemicals like pesticides, herbicides and fertilisers. But we value trust and transparency, so won’t be making any ‘organic’ claims to our customers, without being able to stand behind that claim, 100% of the time.

Can Ilan Style teas be made into iced tea?

Absolutely! Try them for yourself! We would love to hear from you with any creative recipes!

Why wouldn’t you call Ilan Style teas, infusions or tisanes?

We could (because they are), but it’s best to keep things easily recognisable and inclusive.

Which is the best Ilan Style tea to help me sleep?

Try including Ilan Wonder, Cacao Licorice, which also contains coconut as part of your evening ritual. Cacao is a superfood, and together with coconut, is a great source of magnesium, which is important for relaxation. Licorice is a herbal ingredient that has been traditionally used to help calm the body and mind.

Which is the best Ilan Style tea to support my immune system?

All Ilan Style teas contain powerful antioxidants with health-giving properties! However we recommend Ilan Purpose, Moringa Lemon which contains ginger and also olive leaf. This lovely warming, earthy and zesty tea is our native bushfood take on traditional lemon and ginger teas.

Is there an Ilan Style tea for bloating and poor digestion?

If a peppermint tea normally works for you, we recommend Ilan Presence, Native Mint. It contains peppermint and spearmint, and also some cooling native bushfood mints which you might find helps to calm your digestive system. Ilan Presence is cooling and refreshing served as an iced tea too!

Why does my Ilan Presence tea look blue?

Ilan Presence, Native Mint is formulated with butterfly pea flower, which is the magic ingredient that turns your cuppa tea blue. The depth of colour will be different each time, because it depends on how much butterfly pea was scooped up into your brew. If you add a slice of lemon it can even turn purple!

Why are there non-native ingredients in Ilan Style tea?

A couple of reasons! Firstly, it’s practical - because native ingredients can be very strong and sometimes overpowering for a delicate flavour balance. Second, there are some great health benefits in the non-native ingredients in the blends - too great to leave them out!

But the most important reason is what the blend of ingredients represents, especially for Torres Strait Islander Peoples who operated as the gateway to the Australian mainland for global seafarers. Torres Strait Islanders have been important for global trade throughout history! Ilan Style brand endeavours to reawaken those ancient trade routes, and showcase a selection of the best non-native ingredients through our products.