A ZINC FORTIFIED TEA COMPOSITION

1 . A tea composition comprising;

a) a micronized zinc compound;

b) a first polysaccharide comprising maltodextrin;

c) a second polysaccharide comprising gum arabic; and,

d) a leaf tea product,

wherein:

the particle size of the zinc compound is in the range of 0.1 to 50 microns;

the amount of maltodextrin is in the range of 0.5 to 5% by weight of the composition; and

the amount of gum arabic is in the range of 0.05 to 6% by weight.

2 . The composition of claim 1 wherein the particle size of the zinc compound is in the range of 0.1 to 20 micron.

3 . The composition of claim 1 wherein the particle size of the zinc compound is in the range of 0.1 to 10 micron.

4 . The composition of claim 1 wherein the solubility of the zinc compound in water at 25° C. is less than 0.001 g/mL.

5 . The composition of claim 1 , wherein the zinc compound is selected from zinc oxide, zinc carbonate, and a combination thereof.

6 . The composition of claim 1 , wherein the zinc compound is zinc oxide.

7 . The composition of claim 1 , wherein the amount of maltodextrin is in the range of 1 to 4% by weight of the composition.

8 . The composition of claim 1 wherein the amount of gum arabic is in the range of 0.1 to 4% by weight.

9 . The composition of claim 1 wherein the leaf tea product is selected from a black tea product, a green tea product, an oolong tea product, a white tea product or blends thereof.

10 . The composition of claim 8 wherein the leaf tea product is a black tea product.

11 . The composition of claim 1 , wherein the amount of leaf tea product in the composition is in the range of 85 to 98.5% by weight of the composition.

12 . The composition a of claim 1 , wherein the composition further comprises additional nutrients.

13 . A method of making a zinc fortified tea composition comprising the steps of:

a) providing a zinc compound with solubility less than 0.001 g/mL in water at 25° C.;

b) micronizing the zinc compound to produce particle size in the range of 0.1-10 microns;

c) adding a first polysaccharide comprising maltodextrin and a second polysaccharide comprising gum arabic to the micronized zinc compound;

d) mixing the materials of step (c) to obtain a coating mixture; and,

e) coating a leaf tea product with the coating mixture obtained in step d.

14 . A The method of claim 13 , wherein water is added at step (d).

15 . The method of claim 13 , wherein the temperature of the water is in the range of 25° C. to 75° C.

16 . The composition of claim 2 , wherein the zinc compound is selected from zinc oxide, zinc carbonate, and a combination thereof.

17 . The composition of claim 16 , wherein the zinc compound is zinc oxide.

18 . The composition of claim 17 , wherein the amount of leaf tea product in the composition is in the range of 85 to 98.5% by weight of the composition.

19 . The composition of claim 18 , wherein the composition further comprises additional nutrients.