Tea bags are highly synergistic with CTC tea, both from the manufacturer’s side (easier to pack and store) and from the consumer side (faster to brew, more homogenized and predictable product).
Hm, I’d expect these effects to be more important than the price difference of the raw materials. Maybe “easier to pack and store” could contribute more to a lower price than the price difference of the raw materials. But more importantly, I could imagine the american consumer being willing to sacrifice quality in favor of convenience. This trade-off seems like the main one to look at to understand whether americans are making a mistake.
Hm, I’d expect these effects to be more important than the price difference of the raw materials. Maybe “easier to pack and store” could contribute more to a lower price than the price difference of the raw materials. But more importantly, I could imagine the american consumer being willing to sacrifice quality in favor of convenience. This trade-off seems like the main one to look at to understand whether americans are making a mistake.