Product

Kombucha powder

A shelf-stable way to incorporate kombucha’s natural benefits into your dry and powdered products.

What is kombucha powder?

Kombucha is a fizzy, slightly sweet and sour beverage. It’s made by fermenting sweetened tea with certain strains of live bacteria and yeast.

Its powder form starts as fermented tea, but the liquid is dried down into powder, usually by spray-drying or freeze-drying. Freeze-drying keeps more of kombucha’s beneficial live cultures intact, while spray-drying is cheaper and easier to run at scale. Either way, it gives you a shelf-stable powder that’s far easier to handle, store and dose accurately than liquid kombucha, and one that you can drop straight into your dry-blend manufacturing processes.

What is kombucha powder used for?

You’ll find kombucha powder in powdered drink mixes, effervescent tablets and sachets, where its sharp, slightly sour taste works in the product’s favour. It’s also found in supplement capsules and tablets that support digestion and gut health, usually alongside several other active ingredients.

Snack bars and fortified cereals contain kombucha powder for the taste and the organic acids and B vitamins it brings. However, the heat involved in the baking and extrusion processes kills off any live cultures, so you won’t get any probiotic benefits in the finished product, just the flavour and the other nutrients.

Key benefits: Kombucha powder

Gut health

People already link kombucha to gut health, so you’re not starting from a blank page when you bring a new product to market.

Stability

Powder keeps for far longer than liquid kombucha and doesn’t need refrigerating, which simplifies storage, transport and shelf life.

Format flexibility

Available in different drying methods and grades, kombucha powder works across drinks, capsules, tablets and bars.

Flavour profile

The natural sour, fermented taste means you often need fewer additional flavour ingredients to get the profile you’re after.

Precision

Kombucha powder gives you accurate, repeatable dosing in dry-blend manufacturing, which liquid kombucha can’t match.

Why source your kombucha powder from MegaChem (UK)?

We supply both freeze-dried and spray-dried kombucha powder and can advise you on which one suits your application, rather than steering you towards whatever’s cheapest to source.

If you want to say your product contains live cultures, you’ll need to understand when the colony-forming unit (CFU) count was taken, as a count taken at manufacture will always be higher than what’s present when your product reaches the consumer. Bear this in mind when labelling to ensure you don’t make any misleading claims about your product’s probiotic content.

We source kombucha power through a global network that keeps your supply reliable, with full documentation and pack sizes from sample quantities up to bulk volumes. If you’ve got formulation or sourcing questions, our technical team is happy to talk them through with you.

Frequently asked questions

What’s the difference between freeze-dried and spray-dried kombucha powder?

Freeze-drying keeps more live cultures intact, but costs more. Spray-drying is quicker and cheaper, but the heat involved can destroy the live cultures and degrade some of the more heat-sensitive active compounds.

Can I position products containing kombucha powder as probiotic?

Only if the live cultures survive to the end of the product’s shelf life, not at the point of manufacture. We can help you check this.

What use levels are typical in F&B applications?

As kombucha powder is a dietary supplement rather than an essential nutrient, there’s no official recommended daily allowance. Its use levels will depend on the flavour and functional profile you’re after and will vary by product format. We can advise on the right dose for your specific formulation.

Is kombucha powder suitable for vegan formulations?

Yes. Kombucha powder is plant-derived and suitable for vegan, vegetarian, Halal and Kosher formulations, though it’s worth confirming its certification status. We can help you with this.

How should kombucha powder be stored?

Store in a cool, dry environment, away from direct sunlight and moisture, in its original sealed packaging. Full storage and handling guidance is on the safety data sheet.

Get your kombucha powder from Megachem (UK)

If you’re developing a product that uses kombucha powder, our team can help you find the right grade. Get in touch to discuss your specification or request a sample.