UCLA study reveals: Better Booch emerges as the unrivaled champion amo

We believe in the science and art of fermentation, and we’ve always taken pride in our kombucha and in our brewing process. You can taste and feel the difference. In a time when most of the kombucha drinks on the market are blending up vinegar, juice and carbonated water, throwing in a powdered probiotic and calling it kombucha, it can be tough to answer the question: “why are we doing this the hard way, again?”

In a recent study published by UCLA, a bunch of kombucha brands were purchased off shelves in Southern California, for some comparative testing to see how each of the brands differed. The results were, for us at Better Booch, incredibly validating. We came out as the clear winner in terms of microbial diversity, polyphenol/antioxidant levels, and compliance with non-alcoholic labeling requirements (the top brand was over twice the legal limit!). The study provided a ton of insight about Better Booch and about kombucha in general.

Kombucha is high in antioxidant & Polyphenol Content

Kombucha is made with tea. We can see from this graph that all brands scored pretty high on the antioxidant scale - with Better Booch and our organic loose-leaf teas leading the pack. Antioxidants and polyphenols fight free-radical activity and can help tame inflammation in the body.

Antioxidant and polyphenol levels, across kombucha brands

Alcohol Levels

The legal limit for non-alcoholic beverages is below .5% abv. Two of the leading brands came out as over twice the legal limit, with Better Booch consistently in compliance with law.

Alcohol levels across kombucha brands

Better Booch has the most Microbial Diversity

You’d think more alcohol would at least correlate to more microbial diversity, right? But actually, these brands showed a largely monoculture brew - meaning that only one strain was overwhelmingly dominant - inferring likely pasteurization. Better Booch was the clear winner in terms of microbial diversity.

Microbial diversity across kombucha brands

Prominent Beneficial Bacteria Strains in Better Booch

The main probiotic in Better Booch is Lactobacillus Mali, which is a powerhouse probiotic that has been linked to blood sugar regulation, weight management, taming inflammation in the body and a whole lot more. The other organisms are actually the chemicals produced by the microbial flora and are known more commonly as “postbiotics."

Prominent strains of bacteria in Better Booch

We’ve prided ourselves on a more scientific approach to the art of fermenting kombucha, but it’s amazing to know that even 3rd party studies can attest to the fact that Better Booch is *actually* Better.

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References:

Yang, J., Lagishetty, V., Kurnia, P., Henning, S. M., Ahdoot, A. I., & Jacobs, J. P. (2022). Microbial and Chemical Profiles of Commercial Kombucha Products. Nutrients, 14(3), 670. https://doi.org/10.3390/nu14030670