While kombucha has recently gained mainstream popularity, it’s been around for centuries. Made from tea and a symbiotic culture of bacteria and yeast, kombucha offers a unique tangy-sweet taste, unlike any other type of beverage. Although its roots can be traced back to China in 220 BC, kombucha has become more widely popular in the last few years after companies began marketing its health benefits.
Many of today’s kombucha drinkers benefit from improved digestive health (from probiotics), increased energy levels, and metabolic benefits. The global kombucha market has seen great increases over the past couple of years, which are expected to continue. According to Grandview Research, the global kombucha market should grow at a rate of 15.6% from 2022 to 2030!
Want to hop on the kombucha bandwagon? Keep reading to learn more about this popular drink and why canning kombucha is the best solution.
What Is Kombucha?
Kombucha is made through a unique fermentation process that requires yeast, sugar, and black tea. When left to ferment for at least a week, the ingredients undergo chemical reactions that form a liquid film on top. This liquid film, known as SCOBY (symbiotic colony of bacteria and yeast), contains a probiotic that offers many health benefits. In addition, kombucha is high in B vitamins.
Making kombucha is a multi-step process that involves making the SCOBY and going through a first and second fermentation process. Due to this, most kombucha takes between one week and one month to make. The longer kombucha brews, the less sugar it will have and the more vinegar-like taste it will have.
Packaging and Shipping Kombucha
For many years, kombucha was packaged in glass bottles after fermentation. Other packaging options, such as plastic and stainless steel, were not used because kombucha can degrade the materials. While using glass is effective, there are other ways to package kombucha. For manufacturing and shifting, glass can get expensive, costly and is also prone to breaking. When selecting packaging for kombucha, the packaging must be air-tight to preserve the drink’s carbonation.
Convenience of Canning Kombucha
Today, canning kombucha is much more efficient than glass bottles. Both for convenience and the environment, canning kombucha is a better option. While packing kombucha in glass bottles gives products a sleek and high-end feel, it isn’t functional for drinkers. Kombucha drinkers don’t want to worry about the delicacy of glass, especially when they’re on the go. Canned kombucha offers the perfect solution to this dilemma. Using aluminum cans helps keep the weight of the drink down and makes products easier to transport. Furthermore, cans are more optimal for shipping kombucha.
Canning Is Environmentally Friendly
In addition to the convenience for drinkers, using aluminum cans for kombucha is a more environmentally friendly-option than bottling kombucha in glass containers. According to the Aluminium Association, aluminum is one of the most commonly recycled materials. While glass is recyclable, it’s a heavier material that requires more effort and expense to recycle.
Using aluminum cans for kombucha helps keep waste out of landfills by using recycled materials. Aluminum undergoes a quick recycling process (sometimes as little as two months), allowing it to be reused repeatedly for future packaging.
Commonly Asked Questions About Kombucha
How much kombucha can you drink?
Newbie kombucha drinkers might wonder how much they can safely drink. While the drink does offer many health benefits, consuming too much could lead to unpleasant side effects. As a point of reference, the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) recommends consuming no more than 16 oz of kombucha per day. In addition, it is recommended that kombucha be taken on an empty stomach to receive maximum health benefits.
Does kombucha have to be cold?
To maintain its fermented properties, kombucha must stay refrigerated. Raw kombucha contains unpasteurized, live cultures that must be kept at cold temperatures to maintain freshness. If the temperature gets too high, the fermentation process will continue and the flavor profile will change.
What flavors are used in kombucha?
Modern kombucha comes in different flavors. Many companies use highly palatable fruit flavors to make canned kombucha products more attractive to consumers. Some commonly used flavors in kombucha include berry flavors such as strawberry, blueberry, and raspberry. Other popular flavors include lemon ginger, mint lime, mango, and apple.
What is hard kombucha?
Regular kombucha contains a trace amount of alcohol. However, it’s so little that kombucha isn’t considered an alcoholic beverage. In contrast, hard kombucha goes through a longer fermentation process with sugar and yeast, producing an alcoholic drink.
Use Twin Monkeys Kombucha Canning Equipment
Want to start canning your kombucha? Twin Monkeys offers the finest canning equipment to make the process a breeze. Our made-in-America canning machinery can help you can kombucha effectively while creating more user-friendly and environmentally-friendly packaging. Contact us today to learn more about Twin Money’s canning equipment.