Recently we took to our instagram to highlight the fantastic word our good friend and customer Zak Tozer is doing with his Kombucha brand Zak's Kombucha out of Kent, U.K.

What started out as a fun project has now turned into a full grown award-winning business where Zak and his team creates some amazing kombucha using our Forest Friendly tea Lanna Oolong as the base tea for the core range of kombuchas.We’re super excited to continue growing alongside Zak, adding yet another layer of sustainability through our teas to the fantastic business he’s running in England.

We wanted to share a quick Q&A with you all to learn more about his brewing journey and outlook on the world of kombucha!

Q: When did you start making Kombucha?

A: “This was during lockdown in 2020, amongst many other food and fermenting projects. I never intended to start a business from it... a few friends were encouraging me to do so and I was actually quite resistant to the idea! Funny to think now!”

Q: When did you turn this newfound hobby into a business?

A: “My cousin signed me up for a market to also sell coffee beans he was roasting at the time for @andbloss. I didn’t go with any expectations but got myself together to give it my best shot. Sold out in a couple of hours, couldn’t believe it! Needless to say, I continued pursuing it from then on.”

Q: What do you want people to think about when buying Zak’s Kombucha?

A: a myriad of things... to make something to the best of your abilities, as good as you can make it, there shouldn’t have to be compromises and I wanted to cover all angles important to me. Using the best, most sustainable ingredients from forest friendly tea through to organic emission-free panela sugar (via @kentsailcargo) then showcasing local, seasonal produce. This is to highlight seasonality in our local foods and show people that we have amazing and exciting ingredients right here on our doorstep that don’t need to be imported. No single use packaging, even from that first market I ran a bottle return scheme that heavily incentivises reuse over disposability. Doing things authentically and committing always to quality over anything else, such as fermenting in glass jars. In a day and age where commercialisation and squeezing as most profit out of food products as a compromise to good production/growing methods and customer health, I wanted to advocate the antidote to that.“

Q: Why work with Forest Friendly tea?

A: “Tea is a commodity in the UK that almost everyone drinks whilst also knowing very little about, myself included before I started getting into kombucha. When I learned about the way it’s produced, I had to find an alternative that aligns with my philosophy and intent to only use the best and most sustainable ingredients!”

Q: Last question! Any semi-secret trick you’ve learnt over the years brewing to share with anyone else looking to make a similar journey?

A: “One that I share often is that in order to keep brewing more kombucha you don’t need that big alien blob of cellulose that grows on top of the liquid, usually referred to as the SCOBY... you just need the kombucha liquid, that IS the Symbiotic Community Of Bacteria and Yeast!”