People Are Calling Out This Matcha Company For Cultural Appropriation After Its Shocking Marketing Campaign Was Met With A Whole Lot Of Criticism

What’s that I hear? Another tea brand in hot water (pun very much intended)? Late last year, a Canadian bubble tea brand was called out by Simu Liu for cultural appropriation on the Canadian version of Shark Tank. Now, another brand is under fire online for how they're marketing their "squeezable matcha" product to the masses.

There are countless tea practices with deep roots in cultures across the globe, and it looks like commodifying them is becoming a hot market for entrepreneurs.

🍵 So, here's the tea:

Millions have now seen the infamous ad from matcha start-up Poda, which quickly drew backlash across TikTok and beyond. The criticism? Their marketing campaign positioned traditional matcha as a product needing improvement. The improvement? Offering matcha in paste form, via a squeezable tube, rather than its typical powdered form.

"Let's make matcha, but we don't need any of this crap," the company's founder Mujtaba Waseem said in the advertisement as he pushed matcha powder, a bamboo whisk (aka a chasen), a strainer, a bowl, and other traditional matcha tools off his counter to make room for his matcha squeeze tube.

In the advertisement, the founder tells viewers, "Most matcha powder is a scam. Let me explain: most matcha is stale, clumpy, and made in China." He tells viewers that Poda sells "matcha in a squeezable paste format, so it's as fresh as the day it was harvested." But many matcha drinkers — and experts — are calling the company out for making false claims about the green tea.

Joe Lee, a Vancouver-based cafe owner specializing in matcha drinks and products, took to TikTok to share his distaste for how matcha was represented in the ad, saying, "I'm all for product innovation and trying something different. But when you call certain tools people have been using in tea ceremonies for centuries 'crap', it comes off a little tone deaf."

Lee also criticized the product’s appearance, saying, "I’m sorry, but the product just doesn’t look good. Like, if it’s not oxidized, why is it that brownish color?"

For context, oxidation is a chemical reaction that occurs when matcha is exposed to heat, air, or light, causing the bright green powder to turn dull and lose flavor. Poda claims its squeeze tube technology prevents oxidation — but Lee begs to differ.

Lee compared Poda's product to his matcha brand, which he prepares and serves at his cafe: "You know, just look at this. You cannot tell me that brown sludge is fresher than this."

Lee's initial video garnered over 3.3 million views, and his point of view received a LOT of support from commenters, who expressed their own outrage at Poda's ad campaign:

Lee shared that matcha drinkers might have received the squeeze tube product more positively "if they marketed the product for someone with...dexterity or accessibility issues." But that was never part of Poda's marketing campaign.

The cafe owner compared Poda's advertising campaign to the aforementioned viral clip of "gentrified boba" from the 2024 season of Dragon's Den. On the show, French Canadian founders pitched a "better" version of "that trendy, sugary" bubble tea to investors.

On Dragon's Den, actor and investor Simu Liu criticized the pitch for being culturally insensitive. He stated, "There's an issue with taking something that has a distinctly Asian identity and quote-unquote 'making it better,' which I have a problem with."

Like Bobba before them, Poda marketed itself as having “improved” a culturally significant East Asian tea product — and faced swift backlash for it. The company later issued a public apology, echoing Bobba’s own damage control after being called out. Poda’s founder responded to the controversy on TikTok, addressing both his now-notorious “crap” comment and his implication that matcha “made in China” is inherently lower quality.

He stated in the apology: "Earlier, when I researched matcha, I learned most Japanese matcha is more premium to the Chinese one...I was wrong to generalize, and since I have learned more about premium Chinese matcha."

But Joe Lee did not accept this as a valid excuse from the Poda founder. In a recent post, he argued: "[Poda was] asking the community to educate them when they should have done the education themselves...it feels like they're actively trying to avoid hearing what we're saying."

When we asked Waseem how he felt about the criticism Poda is facing, he told Tasty: "I want to acknowledge the concern around our recent campaign. The phrase used in our ad, calling traditional matcha tools 'crap,' was a poor choice of words, and I take full responsibility for that..."

He continued: "It was never my intention to disrespect traditional tea equipment or the culture behind it...I clarified it in my next video and also apologized for the choice of words."

Nevertheless, many matcha drinkers did feel disrespected, which they did not hesitate to tell the Poda team in the comments of Waseem's apology on TikTok:

When we asked about the fallout from the ad campaign and public apology, Waseem defended Poda’s approach as innovative rather than appropriative. “We aim to build onto tradition rather than replace it,” he said, continuing, "I believe we live in a global melting pot of cultures, and most of what we consume today doesn’t originate from our own heritage."

"The best way to respect a cultural product is to celebrate it, evolve it, and make it more accessible to a broader audience.” He acknowledged the divide in the tea community — including Joe Lee's perspective. He told Tasty: “Some welcome a fresh take, while others feel protective of preserving things exactly as they are. Poda is for the former group.”

Following the apology, posts back-and-forth between cafe owner Joe Lee and Poda's founder had already sparked a full-on matcha business showdown. Waseem commented on Lee’s first video, and Lee responded with a follow-up in which he demonstrated an alternative, low-maintenance way to prepare matcha “to show how absolutely unnecessary [Poda’s] product is.”

As Joe Lee demonstrates, it is possible to make a matcha latte without conventional tools — or a squeeze tube. In a deli container, he adds a teaspoon of matcha and a splash of water, closes the lid, and shakes vigorously to combine.

After making his matcha, he takes a jab at Poda: "Obviously using a deli cup isn't the traditional way, but I'm not gonna call the traditional way 'crap.'"

Waseem didn’t take Lee’s response lying down. He posted a TikTok carousel addressing Lee’s critiques and defending the squeeze tube, beginning with: “This person made a video about how irrelevant Poda is...” He justified the product's place in the matcha community, saying, "It's not a shortcut. It's not a gimmick. It's just the best way I found to make matcha simple, fresher, and exceptional... still skeptical? Good. Try it."

This is shaping up to be a very well-caffeinated duke out.

And Lee clapped back, taking up Poda's offer to try their product, saying, "This is a direct call up to Poda. I would love to provide an objective review of your product, to send it to our cafe..."

He continued: "We'll try it out, maybe get some customer feedback as well, and see what they think. We'll do a double-blind comparison and just objectively review your product, aside from the shitty marketing."

It seems the matcha battle has only just begun if Poda follows through on their "try it" dare. No word yet as to whether Lee's "call out" has been received, so we'll just have to watch this space — and debate amongst ourselves who's victorious. Was Mutjaba Waseem's apology substantial enough to redeem the Poda brand? Were Lee's critiques and comebacks strong enough to squash the squeeze tube concept for good? Let us know what you think in the comments!

Hungry for more? Download the free Tasty app to browse and save 7,500+ free recipes — no subscription required.