Tree of Life

Name

Tree of Life

Legal name

Ulrich Walter GmbH

Website

https://lebensbaum.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1979

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

51–100 employees

Short description

LEBENSBAUM is a German family-owned organic tea, coffee, and spice producer founded in 1979, selling 100% certified-organic products through direct-to-consumer e-commerce and a B2B gastronomy shop to consumers and HoReCa businesses in Germany and Austria.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Organic Food & Beverages

NAICS

Coffee and Tea Manufacturing (31192)

SIC

Beverages (2080)

akta.pro primary industry

Coffee (Roasted, Ground, Whole Bean) (CRADAHAG)

Keywords

• Organic tea
• Organic coffee
• Organic spices
• Coffee roasting
• Organic food products

Headquarters

HQ city

Diepholz

HQ country

Germany

HQ region

Europe

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Hardware or Manufacturing

Cost components

Supply Chain, Operations, Personnel, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D

Revenue model

1. Product Sales - Tea, Coffee, Spices: Direct product sales of organic/bio-certified tea, coffee, and spices through their e-commerce platform and B2B shop. Products are sold in various formats including whole bean, ground, instant, and tea bags. The company also offers gift sets and subscription-style recurring product availability.
2. B2B/Gastronomy Sales: Sales to bulk consumers and the gastronomy/hospitality sector through their dedicated B2B online shop (gv-shop.lebensbaum.de).

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

Tree of Life (LEBENSBAUM) produces and sells 100% certified organic tea, coffee, and spices directly to consumers through its own e-commerce shop (lebensbaum.com) in Germany and Austria, and to gastronomy/hospitality businesses through a dedicated B2B shop (gv-shop.lebensbaum.de). The company operates its own coffee roasting facility (Niehoffs Kaffeerösterei in Gronau) using energy-efficient slow roasting technology and sources ingredients directly from long-term farmer partnerships in Peru, Ethiopia, India, Uganda, Guatemala, Mexico, and Kerala.

Product overview

LEBENSBAUM is an organic food and beverage company founded in 1979 by Bio-pioneer Ulrich Walter in Diepholz, Germany. The company produces a portfolio of organic products organized around three core pillars: Tee (tea), Kaffee (coffee), and Gewürze (spices/herbs). The tea range includes black, green, herbal, and fruit teas, along with specialty lines like Cold Brew Tees and Wohlfühltee wellness blends. The coffee portfolio features filter coffee, espresso varieties (Espresso Minero, Espresso Solea), single-origin Herkunftskaffees from Guatemala, Uganda, and India, instant coffee, and decaffeinated options. The spices and herbs division encompasses single spices, regional spice blends (Curry, Barbecue, Pizza & Pasta), Bio-Fix convenience seasoning packets, salad dressings, and toppings. Products are distributed through e-commerce, retail, and a B2B online shop for gastronomy. The company operates its own coffee roasting facility in Gronau, one of Germany's oldest organic coffee roasteries, and maintains a holistic sustainability approach with certifications including EU-Bio, Demeter, Fairtrade, FSSC 22000, ISO 14001, and EMAS.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Tee (Organic Tea) Organic tea products including black tea, green tea, herbal tea, fruit tea, and specialty blends such as Cold Brew Tees and Wohlfühltee wellness blends, for end consumers and gastronomy customers.
• Kaffee (Organic Coffee) Organic coffee products including filter coffee, espresso, whole beans, ground coffee, single-origin Herkunftskaffee, instant coffee, decaffeinated options, and coffee pads, roasted at the company's own Gronau facility.

Quantifiable outcome

• Energy savings of 28% and CO2 reduction of 26% in coffee roasting operations

Named customers2 records

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature2 records

Partnerships

Five partnerships are on record, tiered core.

• Niehoffs Kaffeerösterei (Gronau)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2011Adopted in 2011, Niehoffs Kaffeerösterei is one of Germany's oldest organic coffee roasteries. It operates as Lebensbaum's house-owned roasting facility, handling all coffee roasting operations. The partnership enables full control over roasting processes and quality.
• Coffee farming partners (Peru, Ethiopia, India, Uganda)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerLong-term partnerships with coffee farmers in South America (Peru), Africa (Ethiopia, Uganda), and Asia (India). Beans are sourced directly and roasted in Gronau. Farmers follow organic and often biodynamic (Demeter) farming methods.
• Spice farmers in Kerala, IndiacoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership with small-scale farmers in Kerala, India for organic pepper, ginger, turmeric, cardamom, and cinnamon. Farmers use traditional methods and mixed cultivation. Example partner: Ashok Kumar, a spice farmer in Kerala.
• Coffee farmers (South and Central America)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerLong-term partnerships with Arabica coffee farmers in South and Central American highlands. Beans are shade-grown, hand-harvested, and subject to long-term relationships ensuring fair prices and sustainable practices.
• Robusta coffee farmers (Africa, India)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnerships with Robusta coffee farmers in Africa and India, providing beans for espresso blends like Espresso Minero.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Broad incumbents

• Alnatura: Major German organic retailer and brand owner with a deep private-label range including teas, coffees, and spices. Comparable because it competes for the same organic-conscious German consumer and overlaps in branded organic tea, coffee, and spice SKUs.
• Dallmayr: German premium coffee and food group with grocery, vending, and foodservice channels. Comparable because of overlapping German coffee retail presence, foodservice/gastronomy channel, and premium positioning that competes with Lebensbaum's single-origin and espresso lines.
• Lavazza: Italian global coffee company with extensive espresso, bean, and capsule ranges. Comparable as a branded coffee competitor in the same espresso and ground-coffee segments, particularly relevant to Lebensbaum's Espresso Minero and Solea lines in the European market.
• Melitta: Large German coffee and filter products group with broad retail and foodservice presence. Comparable because it competes with Lebensbaum in filter coffee, espresso, and pads/coffee accessories, and shares the German B2C + B2B coffee distribution model.

Direct peers

• Sonnentor: Austrian organic specialist producing organic teas, herbs, and spices with a strong farm-to-cup narrative. Highly comparable because it shares Lebensbaum's organic positioning, DACH focus, and core product mix of tea, herbs, and spices.
• Rapunzel Naturkost: German organic food manufacturer with its own brand across multiple categories including beverages and pantry staples. Comparable as a similarly certified (Demeter, Bio) organic CPG manufacturer based in Germany with farmer-partnership sourcing models.
• J.J. Darboven: Hamburg-based coffee company producing roasted, ground, espresso, and pad coffees for retail and gastronomy. Comparable because it operates in the same German coffee market with B2B gastronomy distribution and a house-roasting value chain similar to Lebensbaum's Niehoffs roastery.
• Fuchs Gewürze: German spice and seasoning manufacturer with broad retail presence in single spices, blends, and convenience seasonings (including baking and dish-fix ranges). Comparable because it overlaps directly with Lebensbaum's Gewürze, Kräuter, Bio-Fix, and dressing categories in German grocery.
• Teekanne: Germany's largest tea company with broad herbal, fruit, and black/green tea portfolios sold through grocery retail. Comparable because it competes head-to-head with Lebensbaum in German tea, including organic lines, with similar grocery and foodservice distribution.

Emerging players

• Clipper Teas: UK-based ethical and organic tea brand with Fairtrade credentials and broad retail listings. Comparable as an organic/Fairtrade-certified specialty tea player targeting ethically-minded consumers — a similar buyer persona to Lebensbaum's DACH tea customer.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/lebensbaum
• Instagraminstagram.com/lebensbaum_de
• Pinterestpinterest.de/lebensbaum
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/ulrich-walter-gmbh

Compliance10 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Subsidiaries3 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Tree of Life