From a tiny Kombucha Lover to an ardent Kombucha Brewer- Kultured Vitality Foods, a dream Venture for Dhanashree Aole

The founder of Kultured Vitality Foods LLP (2021), she earned a title of “Detoxification Specialist” (Dt. Sp.®) from Academy of Natural Health Science in New Jersey. As a slow food enthusiast, she is obsessed with exploring slow-foods and detoxification therapies for wholesome living and longevity.

From a tiny Kombucha Lover to an ardent Kombucha Brewer- Kultured Vitality Foods, a dream Venture for Dhanashree Aole

Introduction

Dhanashree (MASc., B.E) stepped into the field of Health and wellness Foods after 10 years of being a Metallurgical Engineer. The founder of Kultured Vitality Foods LLP (2021), she earned a title of “Detoxification Specialist” (Dt. Sp.®) from Academy of Natural Health Science in New Jersey. As a slow food enthusiast, she is obsessed with exploring slow-foods and detoxification therapies for wholesome living and longevity.

Journey to Success

She was born into a Maharashtrian Family in Nagpur, where her parents always emphasized on Sattvic lifestyle, a dietary ideology and practice which she swears by. Her father was a science expert, and got home a kombucha culture in early 1990’s. He succeeded in harvesting perfect Kombucha in his first attempt, and Kombucha became a routine for her family. As a kid, Dhanashree loved drinking kombucha daily, and as her father explained the culture, and how it grows and ferments, she became more curious about the mysterious drink (Kombucha).

 Dhanashree was sincere at her studies. Her parent’s high value for education and motivation resulted for her to be the University topper in bachelor’s and she grabbed her first offer from Tata Motors Ltd., Pune. After two years of working with Tata motors, she moved to Canada for Master’s in Mechanical Engineering. In her free time, she started interacting with many holistic health practitioners and fermentation enthusiasts. Her inclination toward holistic living increased during this period. During this phase, she was exposed to ancient food preserving techniques of different cultures and their practice of mindful eating. Her curiosity in fermented foods and more specifically on Kombucha was growing. As a hobby, she started reading books and research papers on Kombucha. She came to know that the health benefits of Kombucha have been touted for centuries by scientists, doctors, and holistic practitioners. Meanwhile, she returned from Canada and joined TCS innovation Center (TRDDC) in Pune. By the end of 2014, she again worked with Engineering Research Center, Tata Motors as a Corrosion and Coating Expert. But her passion for brewing Kombucha was budding at the same time. In DPink Beverages birth in 2016 was result of her intense passion for sharing kombucha with the world. The distinct flavor and texture of kombucha pleased everyone, she was motivated to spread it intensely. Hence, she quit her job to focus honestly and deeply into the business in December 2016. Since the product was very new for Indian market, Dhanashree faced challenges before its launch. Further to promote Kombucha and its health benefits in right way, she decided to earn knowledge on probiotics, prebiotics and postbiotics for vibrant health.

Kultured Vitality Foods LLP Birth

Meanwhile, she got married in early 2017 and moved to USA. There she studied probiotics & digestive health, nutritional and herbal detox therapies for two years and obtained Diploma in Detoxification in 2020 from Academy of Natural Health Science, New Jersey. In Jan 2021, while she was looking for branding support and raising funds to build the business, one of her old friends showed interest to become a part of this mission and Kultured Vitality Foods originated in June 2021.

Motivation behind it

For more than two decades ago, Dhanashree was introduced to Kombucha by her father. However, at that age she was more interested in the taste than phenomenon of Kombucha. It was until 2014, when she got fascinated by the phenomenon of fermentation and decided to brew Kombucha herself. Keeping in mind her father’s healing story, she was consistent in demystifying the process of kombucha making and created her first perfect brew. Dhanashree came to know about the magnitude of Kombucha’s health benefits, until her long-seated health issue got resolved within a month of consuming Kombucha. Using her extensive experience, she started to share this wonder drink with family and friends; and delivered this new knowledge in clear, tasteful, and healthful way. Soon kombucha started spreading with positive word of mouth. Moving forward, she became more cognizant about client’s health needs and explored distinct recipes with kombucha culture.

 

What was the idea behind it?

For the past few years, consumers are increasingly turning towards food and beverage for functional benefits, to combat the negative stressors which are the greatest obstacle to their vibrant well-being. The idea of making Kombucha commercially available in India was based on the belief that it could improve people’s quality of life and help them restore the body’s natural healing ability through infinite nutritional excellence. Dhanashree is determined to awaken people’s consciousness of simple yet powerful laws of health; by offering well-curated recipes of Kombucha which have perfect blend of taste and health.

Business Information

Kultured Kombucha is a restoring drink that is home-brewed, unpasteurized, and handcrafted in small batches. Our brew cycles are optimized to make sure that the final drink is low in sugar, and rich in gut-friendly microbes & bioavailable nutrients (vitamins, antioxidants, essential acids etc.). As a crucial step towards revival of fermentation tradition in India, Kultured is offering Kombucha in both original and herb-infused form.

Major Challenges

Kombucha is not a modern age soda with exotic flavours but the most powerful traditional fermented beverage with plethora of health benefits. Lack of awareness and improper understanding about the significant benefits of Kombucha are the major challenges.

Our nation is struggling with lifestyle diseases, moreover, COVID-19 pandemic is an eye opener that we need to learn to strengthen our innate or inherent immunity that has existed from the earliest stages of evolution; and operate continually to keep us disease-free. Now as detoxification specialists and an ardent Kombucha brewer, she is determined to explore and evangelize the health benefits of Kombucha.

YouTube Series

Glad to share with you all that Dhanashree is doing a YouTube series on nourishing fermented foods with Celebrity Chef Harpal Singh Sokhi. The purpose of this series is to revive the ancient wisdom of cooking and share slow-food recipes, for better living.

Advice or suggestion to readers

We are failing to thrive in this microbial world is because our lifestyle and approach to health care has become divorced from nature.  We sincerely need to understand how our innate immune system works and nurture it well. Embrace kombucha into your routine, as nutrition is all about healthy substitutions. Remember that kombucha is not cure-all drink, but a living beverage that strengthens the Gut flora and nourishes whole body, so that the immune and other physiological systems function more efficiently. Swear by fermented Foods for a vibrantly healthy life. Drink Wise, Think Wise!