Method for the determination of the geographic origin of green teas was developed using sencha (most popular green tea in Japan) samples produced in Japan, China and Australia. Similarly, the method was also developed among Shizuoka, Mie and Kagoshima prefectures which accounted for about 75% of sencha production in Japan. Ten elements (Al, Ba, Cu, Fe, Mg, Mn, Ni, Rb, Sr, Zn) were analyzed in sencha samples originated in three countries or in three prefectures described above. Based on CDA (canonical discriminant analysis), 6 elements (Ba, Mg, Mn, Ni, Rb, Sr) were found to be effective in the determination of the geographic origin among three countries. After examining the samples not using for the modeling to elucidate the reliability of the got CDA model, it was classified 97% correctly. Similarly, based on CDA, 7 elements (Al, Cu, Fe, Mg, Ni, Rb, Zn) were found to be effective in the determination of the geographic origin among three prefectures. It was classified 95% correctly. Those results suggested that it could be possible to determine the geographic origin of sencha using the metal-element composition.
