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Sweet Leaf Tea, one of the fastest-growing US makers of ready to drink (RTD) iced teas, has completed its largest round of funding to date from Catterton Partners, a leading private equity firm focused on the consumer sector.

An early investor in companies including juice maker Odwalla, Build-a-Bear, PF Chang's China Bistro, and Kettle Foods, Catterton Partners has committed $18 million of growth capital to Sweet Leaf Tea.

The investment will be used by Sweet Leaf Tea to increase its marketing efforts and expand its national distribution, which already includes natural stores like Whole Foods and grocery chains like Kroger and Safeway.

"The ready-to-drink tea category is a $2.8 billion industry with the premium segment growing at an annual rate of 25%," said Michael Farello, a partner in Catterton, who will join Sweet Leaf Tea's Board of Directors.

"Our assessment shows that Sweet Leaf Tea has the greatest potential for growth of any company in the category. This investment will give Sweet Leaf Tea the resources it needs to achieve an entirely new level of national awareness and sales."

"We are very excited about Catterton Partners' investment in Sweet Leaf Tea and the opportunities it will enable," said Sweet Leaf CEO Clayton Christopher, who founded the business ten years ago in Austin, Texas.

"In addition, Catterton Partners' experience in the retail and food service industries, branding expertise and support for our vision for the brand make them the ideal strategic partner for us as we continue our rapid growth."

Sweet Leaf’s sales have almost doubled every year over the last five years. Total US sales of RTD teas are forecast to top $4.4 billion in 2011.