08/26/2026
I said "What the F***" a little too loudly while I read this label at the grocery store....but for good reason.
Any time I'm at the store, I like to peruse the kombucha section (market research, ya know?) and realized there was a new line of kombucha released from a big brand kombucha company and I was utterly annoyed and dismayed to see it. I've always said from day one, my goal isn't to bash other companies, but rather to educate, so I will use this ingredients panel from this kombucha can to educate you to decide for yourself and refrain from calling anyone out but I will not refrain from using CAPS a LOT cause it's frustrating and we need to call attention to it.
🌿People ask us often, how do I know what I am grabbing is authentic/real kombucha? Are there ingredients that should not be in kombucha?
And this ingredients panel below is a great way to help dissect both of these questions.
🌿Authentic kombucha means that it has been traditionally fermented and not altered in any way, which also includes pasteurization. Authentic kombucha only requires FOUR ingredients: Water, Tea, Sugar, and a mother, or what is known as the "SCOBY," which stands for "Symbiotic Culture of Bacteria and Yeast." Authentic kombucha goes through the fermentation process, which can be anywhere between 15-30 days, in which that SCOBY consumes the sugar and converts that sugar into organic acids and probiotics that naturally detoxify the body, aide in digestion, and provides natural energy by way of B-Vitamins also created in the fermentation process.
When you look at this specific ingredients panel you see that the first few ingredients are indeed those ingredients, HOWEVER, did you see that they added sugar TWICE?? Once for fermentation (which is required or you do not get kombucha), and then AGAIN after, mainly for taste. Authentic kombucha never needs extra sugar, monk fruit, stevia, or ESPECIALLY any sugar alcohols (in fact, oddly enough as kombucha is known as the gut friendly drink, sugar alcohols like "xylitol, sorbitol, erythritol", etc are actually linked to gastrointestinal distress as the body doesn't recognize sugar alcohols and cannot be absorbed fully in the small intestine, leading to bloating/pain/diarrhea), which a lot of other kombucha brands choose to add.
🌿Also, since we are on the topic of authentic kombucha, many kombucha brands are transparent in their approach to fermentation (we show daily videos of us behind the scenes here at LFK and have clear bottles for a reason), but this particular brand states on their website they use "a proprietary fermentation process," meaning they don't want to disclose their fermentation time or potency of culture. This could and often mean that they could simply make a mixture of sugar, tea, etc and add in a little bit of kombucha at the end and call it kombucha, but since they added in kombucha somewhere along the way, it is now a "proprietary fermentation process."
🌿Okay, so now you know about authentic fermentation for kombucha, let's touch on the probiotics and pasteurization. As many people know or associate, raw unpasteurized kombucha has billions of strains of bacteria and yeast, that is more widely known as the ever popular "probiotics," which can flourish and build a strong microbiome/gut and in turn help many with digestion and bolster immunity in return. These LIVING and ACTIVE probiotics are sensitive and keep alive with refrigeration. That is why you see most authentic kombucha brands (like ours) best by date our kombucha for 6-8 months out, as the kombucha is still LIVING and keeps acidifying over time. What is a huge bummer is that many big name brands will pasteurize their kombucha simply to extend the shelf life/help distribution go more smoothly, and apply high heat to the kombucha and kill off most of the naturally forming probiotics AND THENNNNNNNNNNNNN (had to get your attention here), add in their own lab made probiotics. Do you see listed toward the bottom "DE111" notice it's a trademarked bacteria strain? Although it IS a probiotic, it is a single isolated strain, whereas authentic unpasteurized kombucha offers a wider spectrum of organic yeasts and mixed microbial populations.
🌿Saving the "best" for last, lets touch on NATURAL FLAVORS. Did you notice how they put both "Organic AND Natural Flavors?" Natural flavors is the new way to state "not natural" in my opinion as it is a catch all for things which include stabilizers, emulsifiers, preservatives, and carrier solvents that have to come from plant based sources, which deem them natural. For example, this is a strawberry flavor of kombucha and although strawberry juice is added here, there is a natural flavor out there called "strawberry furanone," which is most often made through a multi-step chemical synthesis, which is a fancy way of saying they use chemical building blocks in which take simple, non-fruity chemicals (kind of like plastic LEGO blocks) and chain them together in a laboratory until they form the exact same shape as the strawberry smell/taste molecule. No matter which method they use, the final smell molecule is exactly the same—and that is how your strawberry candy, soda, and lip balm get their yummy scent and taste! Because they don't have to disclose how they achieve these natural flavors, some are more "natural" than others, but the fact that they listed BOTH organic and non organic, makes me wonder and still nonetheless, developed in a lab and purchased for the sake of flavoring (and making it cheaper for them) so you, the consumer, would enjoy.
What makes us different? Here at Living Full Kombucha:
🌿 We do a traditional and authentic fermentation and ferment for 30 days to get that potency of living probiotics and organic acids
🌿 We NEVER add extra sugar for flavoring, and we only flavor with whole fruits and herbs.
Many say they can taste the difference, and we hope you can to.
🌿Again, we aren't here to bash a specific company. In fact, we have many to thank for paving the way for introducing kombucha to you and making it so popular so some of us smaller producers can enter the game, BUT it is frustrating that several of these companies ESPECIALLY in the wellness/good for you space who are making certain decisions specifically with choosing ingredients and the process itself advertising terms like "gut healthy" that are not transparently sharing with consumers things simply to make it taste better and make a buck. We want you to live your fullest, and that shouldn't come at a cost or cheapening such a beautiful ancient art like fermentation.
The more you know. 👊
