Mamachari Kombucha, founded in 2013 and owned by Lorrie Vorkink and Ben Phillips, brews craft kombucha in downtown Salt Lake City, Utah. They focus on brewing the finest kombucha, using organic and natural ingredients to produce a wide variety of flavor profiles while producing a consistent and quality product. Mamachari Kombucha products are all vegan with exception of two flavors that include honey.  Some of their unique flavors include Lemon Ginger, Mint Lime, Roots & Botanicals, Jasmine Rose, Concord Grape, Honey Hops, Flower Power, and Lavender Honey. They also have a tap room where the public sample and purchase specialty flavors such as Mango Habanero, Blueberry Pomegranate, and The Aloha.

Scope

Mamachari Kombucha wanted to increase their customer base by selling their product in local Whole Foods grocery stores, which required them to obtain the Whole Foods Vendor Certification.

Solution

The University of Utah Manufacturing Extension Partnership (UUMEP) Center connected Mamachari with a trusted third-party provider Utah Food Safety Consulting, to help them prepare for their food safety audit and implement the Whole Foods’ safety standards at their facility.

Results

As a result of Utah Food Safety Consulting’s assistance, Mamachari:

– Developed food safety procedures and passed the Whole Foods 3rd Party Audit

– Obtained the Whole Foods Vendor Certification and is now available in Whole Foods stores statewide

Impacts

Increased their annual sales by $24,000

Testimonial

“Working with the UUMEP has been a great experience. From the beginning, they have been genuinely interested in what we do, and how to best help facilitate business growth. They were very hands-on and helped identify resources we were unaware of, then coordinated initial meetings as well as follow-up meetings to help ensure continued progress toward the end goal. We highly recommend engaging with the UUMEP team to support any specific objectives related to consulting and/or engineering to facilitate growth. As a result of our experience, we will be reaching out to UUMEP often!”

Ben Phillips, Owner