KKK and the faecal implants.
by Adam Robinson
No, this is not the name of a student rock band. Though it should be. The KKK of the title refers to our Kombucha, Kimchi and Kefir. We have been making and selling kombucha for a while and, now, in such quantities, that there is now a mini factory in the Midlands.
We have also been making live ferments of yoghurt and sauerkraut. And let’s not forget the ongoing fungal and bacterial fermentation of our bread production.
Fermentation is a fascinating subject providing many rich and deep flavours. It is most talked about in the oenological world, but is relevant in nearly all of our favourite consumptions – chocolate, coffee, vanilla, tobacco, marijuana, beer, smoked salmon, fish sauce, aged meat etc etc.
For me, the virtue of fermentation lies in playing with the flavours and producing wonderful foodstuffs. For a large and increasing band of fermentation acolytes, the virtue lies in their health giving properties.
In the States, Sandor Katz has been the leading prophet for fermentation and his advocacy has coincided with the recognition by allopathic medicine of the huge importance of a healthy microbiome, particularly in the area of mental health.
Two random facts (there are so many more but I’m trying to keep it pithy) –
The human body has about 30 trillion human cells and 40 trillion microbial cells including bacteria, viruses and fungi. In the gut alone, the bacteria weigh 1.5 kgs
The gut has 500 million neurons, which are directly connected to your brain. Ever had a ‘gut feeling’? Ha
Mainstream science has, over the last score of years, discovered the benefits of a healthy gut and its converse, the damage of a challenged microbiota. Happily, pharmaceutical companies have, in tandem, discovered how to make money from this discovery. There is something called a faecal microbiota transplant (FMT for those in the know). It’s packaged shit. Probably in both senses of the word shit. Some sportsmen are also using this therapy to enhance their performances.
Back to our fermented products. I’m sure we’re all familiar with the terms prebiotic and probiotic. For clarity’s sake, the former feeds our microbiota (e.g. good sourdough, vegetables etc) and the latter contain some of the beneficial bacteria that populate our bodies (e.g. live yogurt, live pickles). Unfortunately, there is no money to be made from live and fresh food for the pharmaceutical companies.
So you could eat well. Or eat badly, eat other people’s shit and support big pharma. I am sure that over the next few years we will read lots about the benefits of FMT therapies and much less about food.
Two more thoughts –
Why do the names for pickles usually contain plosives (hard consonants)? Kefir, gherkin, cornichon, kombucha, kimchi, choucroute, sauerkraut?
There is a continual attempt to try to distinguish the human animal from other animals. One of those attributes was thought to be cooking. If fermenting is cooking, then squirrels do it (by storing nuts and making them more digestive) and crocodiles do it (by storing and maturing their meat).