Thursday, March 28, 2024
ADVT 
National

B.C. Site Testing Over 700 Samples Of Kombucha For Alcohol Levels

Darpan News Desk The Canadian Press, 07 Nov, 2019 07:58 PM

    VANCOUVER - The popular fermented drink kombucha is considered a healthy beverage containing good-for-the-gut probiotics but the BC Centre for Disease Control is concerned some products may have higher-than-regulated levels of alcohol.

     

    The centre is working with the BC Institute of Technology, which is testing the last of about 760 samples of the beverage.

     

    Lorraine McIntyre, the centre's food safety specialist, said the impetus for the research came partly from concerns that some kombucha products in the Maritimes may contain more alcohol than levels allowed by Health Canada or the province, where any amount of alcohol must be listed on labels.

     

    The federal regulator requires beverages containing more than 1.1 per cent alcohol by volume to stipulate how much booze is in them, she said, adding beverages containing one per cent alcohol are not considered to be liquor in British Columbia and Ontario, though levels vary slightly by province. The allowable amount in the United States is 0.5 per cent alcohol by volume.

     

    The samples that are being tested were collected in the Vancouver area from producers located in B.C., Alberta, Quebec, Ontario and the United States. One came from a producer in Australia.

     

    The research was also prompted by issues in the U.S., where bottles of kombucha have been found to have more than the legal limit of alcohol, McIntyre said.

     

    Alcohol is a normal byproduct of the fermentation process but levels can increase as kombucha products sit, especially if they're not refrigerated, she said, adding consumers should know how much alcohol is present in the green- or black-tea based beverages that are infused with fruit, mint, ginger and other flavours.

     

    "We really want consumers to make an informed choice so kombucha may not be the right beverage for everyone and particularly this isn't a beverage you should feed to young children or if you're pregnant and you want to avoid alcohol to protect your baby."

     

    The products being tested by the research group were collected by the centre's food safety specialists and environmental health officers from regional health authorities who visited various places including grocery stores, restaurants, farmers markets and production facilities.

     

    The centre is expected to report its findings at the end of the month.

     

    Paula Brown, director of the BC Institute of Technology's Natural Health and Food Products Research Group, said various methods exist to test the level of alcohol in non-alcohol beer or booze produced in a distillery but kombucha presents some challenges because it contains sugar, yeast, micro-organisms and possible additives.

     

    "It's not just water and alcohol in it. The bottles can have any number of flavourings and I've even seen bottles that have quinoa," she said, adding the tea bases can contain chemical compounds that can affect the fermentation process.

     

    Brown said a method developed by the research group to measure ethanol levels in kombucha production and during storage is being used as part of the study with the BC Centre for Disease Control.

     

    The goal is to establish best practices for producing and properly storing kombucha to benefit both the industry and consumers, she said.

     

    "From our research we know that time and temperature have an impact on the production of ethanol during storage. It's a bit of a concern if products are coming from far way and you don't know how they were transported, you don't know how long it's been since they were manufactured, you don't know how long they sat around," Brown said.

     

    "Refrigeration can be variable and we don't really now about refrigeration during transport but it can definitely have an impact."

     

    Hannah Crum, president and co-founder of Los Angeles-based Kombucha Brewers International, said a major retailer with stores in Canada pulled all of its kombucha off the shelves in the U.S. in 2010 after a finding of higher-than-legal alcohol levels though that did not involve an official government recall.

     

    "It did help us to understand that there were aspects that we needed to address in terms of accurate testing processes," she said.

     

    Further concerns about alcohol levels since then have prompted the 400-member organization of brewers and suppliers to seek an accurate testing method from an international group that includes scientists who set standards for analysis of food and beverages, she added.

     

    Crum said AOAC International is in the process of collecting data to precisely test kombucha but a viable method is likely years away.

     

    "Some brands have indicated that they test their competitors' kombucha and they find that sometimes products are above the half-a-per-cent (limit)," she said of levels allowed in the United States.

     

    Crum said she is aware of the testing being done in British Columbia and is looking forward to the findings.

     

    MORE National ARTICLES

    Lane Closures Coming To Lions Gate Bridge Thursday Night

    Drivers are advised that single-lane alternating traffic will be in effect from 10 p.m. on Thursday, Nov. 7, to 5 a.m. on Friday, Nov. 8, 2019, for joint and bearing repairs on the Lions Gate Bridge.

    Lane Closures Coming To Lions Gate Bridge Thursday Night

    Conservative Post-election Gathering Gets Underway On Parliament Hill

    Conservative Post-election Gathering Gets Underway On Parliament Hill
    OTTAWA - Members of the federal Conservative caucus gathered Wednesday on Parliament Hill to sift the ashes of the 2019 federal election campaign — and contemplate the future of Leader Andrew Scheer.    

    Conservative Post-election Gathering Gets Underway On Parliament Hill

    Celebrity Businessman Kevin O'leary, Wife Sued In Deadly Boat Crash

    TORONTO - A fatal boat crash on an Ontario lake this summer has prompted a wrongful death lawsuit against celebrity businessman Kevin O'Leary and his wife Linda O'Leary, who was driving their vessel.    

    Celebrity Businessman Kevin O'leary, Wife Sued In Deadly Boat Crash

    Canada's Down Syndrome Community Helps Teach Google How To Understand Speech

    Canada's Down Syndrome Community Helps Teach Google How To Understand Speech
    That's what Google estimates people with Down syndrome experience because of speech difficulties associated with physiological differences in their mouths.

    Canada's Down Syndrome Community Helps Teach Google How To Understand Speech

    RCMP Detectives At Rural B.C. Community Of Anglemont After Two Bodies Found

    RCMP Detectives At Rural B.C. Community Of Anglemont After Two Bodies Found
    ANGLEMONT, B.C. - RCMP are investigating the discovery of two bodies in a home in British Columbia's southern Interior.

    RCMP Detectives At Rural B.C. Community Of Anglemont After Two Bodies Found

    Quebec Backtracks On Changes To Immigration Program Aimed At Students

    Quebec Backtracks On Changes To Immigration Program Aimed At Students
    QUEBEC - The Quebec government is backtracking on proposed changes to a popular immigration program aimed at university students that would've seen many of them sent home.    

    Quebec Backtracks On Changes To Immigration Program Aimed At Students