If you home-compost you get used to finding tea bag skeletons in the compost. For years I used to rip open the used tea bag, compost the tea and discard the bag.

In the last few years the largest two brands here (Ireland: Lyons and Barrys) have gone somewhere between "plastic free" and "biodegradable" (but not home-compostable). 95% of tea is sold in the form of tea bags here. https://livinglightlyinireland.com/2021/02/12/plastic-free-t... (article is from 2021, I think the title is suffering from a Wordpress date placholder)

I throw the whole teabag, rope and all, into the compost and the mealworms make it into incomprehensible brown slush along with the rest of the pile in a few days. It’s always way more productive using insects in the compost.

Thanks for this; have been buying Barry’s lately in US