Safety of Homemade Kombucha?

[deberaw]

...Just wondering how safe it is to make your own Kombucha???I've been interested in Kombucha and know of several folks who brew their own...and then my older sis said she knows of a fellow in her workplace who became very ill from his Kombucha, because of the mold or something to do with it????any thoughts???? Thanks!.......

[Rawkinlocs]

Google became my "best friend" when it came to researching Kombucha!

I learned a great deal about what to do and not do to avoid problems such as mold, etc. There are a few "dos and don'ts" such as making sure you keep the kitchen clean especially the brewing area; do not allow plants or fruit around the area you are brewing in (mold can form); do not smoke or light scented candles/incense, etc; add a couple of oz. of apple cider vinegar to the mixture to discourage mold from forming; then there's the whole thing about what types of tea, sugar, etc should and should not be used. People tend to do what they want (such as trying to brew kombucha using honey or agave nectar) that will give less-than-favorable results.

I've been brewing my own now for several months or so and haven't had any problems with sickness, mold or any of that because I did my due diligence and researched a LOT before making my own and got info from what my gut instincts told me were the most reliable and credible sources.

I think too that sometimes people get strong detox effects from drinking kombucha and claim it's from something bad...similar to how I've heard of people getting "sick" when they go raw (detox) but they say raw foods made them sick. It's even stated on many sources not to drink more than 4 oz. when you first start out and then gradually increase the amount because it's such a strong detoxifier.

So, it could have been a number of things with this gentleman that made him feel as he did.

[subbacultcha]

Heh, I did barely any research and have only ever made my own kombucha... I've always used oolong or black tea and plain white sugar. I keep it in a cupboard in my room and I've never had any problem with mold.

[Clare]

...the thing is that if you get mold, it is very obvious. ALso, if the kombucha ever tastes weird, you are supposed to dump everything and start fresh. When I left mine alone last summer for 3 weeks (traveling) it had mold when I returned and mold looks very different than the normal color patterns and bubbles in the scoby "mushroom"

[deberaw]

Ah-ha! Thank you for all of your replies!