From kombucha to kimchi, from sourdough to tempeh, fermentation went into overdrive in 2021.
People who were making kombucha to drink at home started selling their wares online, lured by the low barrier to entry. All anyone needs is a scoby - symbiotic culture of bacteria and yeast - plus tea, sugar and time. The scoby turns sweetened tea into kombucha in seven to 10 days.
Then, to make it palatable, people add fruit, fruit juices, herbs and other enhancements.
Home-based businesses such as Moon Juice Kombucha, Katong Kombucha and Jun Kombucha flourished, and some have done well enough to be thinking of levelling up to small, licensed food factory spaces.
Others such as Fizzicle, Pourabucha and Yocha Kombucha have already made the leap. They supply to restaurants and, in the case of Yocha, its drinks are sold in FairPrice and Cold Storage supermarkets, online on Redmart and Amazon, and are also available in restaurants.
The A-Zs that rocked 2021: Fermentation fever | The Straits Times