Turning Traditional Herbal Tea into a Modern Capsule Format

A long-established pharmaceutical and wellness company in Hong Kong wanted to modernize the way consumers prepare herbal tea. The goal was not to replace the character of traditional Chinese herbal formulas. It was to make them easier to enjoy at home, at work or in a retail demo setting, without a long brewing process or specialized utensils.

The customer planned to launch a range of herbal wellness tea capsules. Each formula needed a clear product identity, stable brewing performance and a format that could be used with capsule-style home brewing machines. At the same time, the raw materials were much more demanding than coffee powder. Many herbal tea blends contain fibrous particles, uneven densities and ingredients that behave differently under pressure. A standard coffee capsule structure could not simply be copied.

The Challenge

During early development, the key technical issue appeared at the bottom of the capsule. A common coffee capsule bottom structure uses aluminum film with filter paper. This works well for many coffee powders because the flow, particle size and extraction pressure are relatively predictable.

Herbal tea behaved differently. Under higher extraction pressure, the traditional bottom structure created too much resistance. In testing, the capsule could backflow, deform or burst. That would affect flavor, create waste and make the product unreliable for commercial production.

The customer also needed multiple formula versions. Different herbal functions and flavors had to be easy to distinguish in production, in packaging and for consumers. This meant the project needed both structural development and brand-facing packaging work.

ONWIN's Solution

ONWIN first developed the visual and packaging direction around custom printed sealing films. Each formula could carry its own logo or printed identity, allowing the customer to separate SKUs clearly while improving the overall product presentation.

The deeper work was in capsule structure testing. After multiple rounds of brewing and pressure evaluation, ONWIN moved away from the traditional aluminum film plus filter-paper bottom. The final solution used an aluminum film plus non-woven bottom filter structure.

This structure gave the capsule stronger pressure tolerance and more controlled flow. The non-woven layer helped reduce extraction resistance, while still filtering the herbal material and supporting a clean cup. The revised bottom structure addressed the backflow and bursting issues that appeared in the earlier tests.

ONWIN also matched the bottom structure with suitable capsule shells, sealing films and automatic filling and sealing equipment, so the solution could move beyond lab validation into repeatable production.

The Result

The customer approved the customized solution after repeated sample testing. The project moved into equipment and material supply, including multiple automatic capsule filling and sealing machines, capsule shells and custom printed sealing films.

The production line is now in operation in Hong Kong. For the customer, the project opened a new way to present traditional herbal wellness products to younger and convenience-driven consumers. For ONWIN, it demonstrated how capsule technology can be adapted beyond coffee when the material, pressure and filtration system are developed together.

Why This Case Matters

Herbal materials cannot be treated as ordinary coffee powder. The particle structure, flow behavior and desired brew profile all affect the capsule design. This case shows why pilot testing matters before a brand commits to tooling, equipment or a large material order.

When the capsule shell, bottom filter, sealing film and machine are developed as one system, a traditional ingredient can become a modern, easy-to-use capsule product without losing its product identity.