The Red List of Theaceae, the tea family, was published in December 2017 and identified that a third of the world’s Theaceae species are threatened with extinction. The report assessed 254 Theaceae species and identified 85 as threatened with extinction. The report also identified two species as Extinct in the Wild, the Franklin tree (Franklinia alatamaha) and Camellia amplexicaulis, highlighting the urgent need for conservation action. Nearly a half of the species in the Camellia genus are at risk of extinction in the wild. Tea itself (Camellia sinensis) is assessed as Data Deficient, due to a lack of available information on the species’ wild population, despite its global cultivation. The centre of diversity for Theaceae is East Asia, with the largest number of species found in China and Viet Nam.

The Red List of Theaceae includes a survey of ex situ collections. It revealed that 51% of threatened species are held in a collection. This falls short of the requirements of Target 8 of the Global Strategy for Plant Conservation, which states that at least 75% of threatened species should be conserved ex situ. The majority of these threatened species occur in fewer than five ex situ collections, which is unlikely to represent the genetic diversity needed for restoration or reintroduction programmes.