Beverages maker, Fresh Kambucha Private Limited has distanced itself from counterfeit products that have flooded the market, tarnishing the firm’s image.
Kambucha is made up of fermented tea, sugar, ginger, and yeast.
In an interview with NewsDay, Fresh Kambucha’s head of marketing Felo Felo said their company name is being tarnished by illegitimate entities mimicking their beverages.
"Our company name is Fresh Kambucha Private Limited but there are people selling other fermented drinks labeling them as Kambucha in the streets,” said Felo.
“Ours is a registered company (and) we have all the required documents as expected by the law and we have a traceable address unlike other companies selling products they claim to be ours yet they do not have any contacts and addresses displayed on their packages."
The government last week flagged Kambucha drink as part of its campaign against drug and substance abuse.
Although Kambucha is classified as an herbal drink, aphrodisiac, energy drink, or supplementary food, there are reports of it being used as an intoxicant.
Recently, the Masvingo council banned its workers from drinking Kambucha during working hours.
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However, Felo said Kambucha drinks #1, #2, #3 and Manyuchi Power contain 0.5% alcohol and hence cannot be classified as alcoholic drinks.
"We are in the process of making another product, Kambucha Lite which has 8.05% alcohol content which will be in the streets in the coming days. We are just waiting for proper documents from relevant authorities to check the product,” he said, adding that they have been forced to change branding on their packaging to fight counterfeit products.
Other types of legitimate Kambucha are imported from Zambia and the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC).
The fermented drink became popular at the height of the COVID-19 pandemic when it was viewed as an effective remedy for the respiratory disease.
