The green tea harvest starts in mid April and continues until the end of May. There are also two additional harvesting periods, one in late June, and another from late July to early August. Green tea can be harvested by hand or with a power plucker. Once the tea has been harvested it is taken to a green tea processing facility (known as Aracha Koujo).

Once at the processing facility the first step is to transfer the freshly harvested tea leaves to specially designed containers. These containers constantly blow air on the tea leaves to keep them fresh while the tea leaves while awaiting processing.

The next step in green tea processing tea is steaming. This important process stops the oxidation which would harm the flavor of the tea leaves. The length the steaming process varies with each variety of green tea. The tea leaves are first steamed in a Revolving Steaming Machine and then in a Belt-Conveyer Steaming Machine. The tea leaves are then cooled to room temperature before they go to the next phase in processing.

Next the tea leaves are sent to the Primary Tea Rolling Dryer which removes moisture from the leaves. Then using hot air, moisture is removed both from the tea leaf surface and the inside of the leaf.

The tea leaves are now ready for the Tea Roller machine. Under pressure, the tea leaves are rolled to remove moisture from every part of the tea leaf. The remaining moisture will now be evenly distributed within the tea leaf.

The next step is transfer to the Secondary Tea Rolling Dryer. In a revolving round dryer with a spinning pedal the tea leaves are rolled and dried until they become round in shape. This is an important step and care must be taken to remove the tea leaves from the dryer at the appropriate time so that all the leave have a consistent moisture level.

Now the tea leaves are ready for the last rolling machine which is called the Final Tea Rolling Dryer. In this machine small amounts of the tea leaves are placed in small pots. Then under pressure they are gradually rolled into small round shapes that give them a small needle-like appearance which is characteristic of Japanese green tea.

On a long conveyer belt the tea leaves are spread out and dried slowly for last time. After drying, the tea is sifted in the Tea Refining Machine to remove any stems or other debris. It takes approximately three hours to process green tea.

Finally tea is blended together to produce different grades and packed in various airtight containers to maintain freshness. Freshly harvested green tea leaves can be processed and delivered to the wholesaler by the following day.