Today on the blog, we feature Abha Appasamy, the Founder of Abha’s Probiotic, a home based business that produces small batches of probiotic food in Chennai. Her label story…
Tell us a bit about yourself.
My name is Abha Appasamy, and I’m the founder and proprietor of Abha’s Probiotics. I am 61 and married to David Appasamy, who is part of the leadership of a Digital Markting company. We have two grown children, a daughter, 32, who is married and a son, 27, who is autistic.
How & why did you begin Abha’s Probiotics?
I have always been interested in the topics of health and food, and in looking after my own and my family’s health by natural and holistic methods. Some years ago I found out about the importance of probiotic foods like Kombucha and Beet Kvass when I was looking for dietary help to deal with my autistic son. I incorporated them into my family’s diet with benefits to our health.
Years earlier, when I was in my 30’s, I had been introduced to Kombucha by my mother, who enjoyed experimenting with new things, but I didn’t know much about it because in those days we had no internet to answer our questions. In the summer of 2017 my husband was hospitalized with a serious intestinal infection, and had to be treated with strong antibiotics. While researching how to rebuild his damaged gut eco-system, I came across Kefir, which I discovered is one of the most powerful probiotic foods in the world. I managed to procure the culture and began to make it at home regularly. Very soon he was back to normal and enjoying good health, and Kefir became a part of our daily diet.
This incident rekindled my interest in Probiotic foods that had become dormant by then. The seed of an idea was planted in my mind and I began making the probiotic foods I knew about, and tested how much interest people showed by posting pictures on my Facebook page. This was in January 2018. As my posts generated interest and people began asking what these products were and where they could buy them, I realised that there was a market for genuine probiotic foods. I decided to start a small home based business making and selling probiotic foods and drinks, and called it Abha’s Probiotics. Seeing that very few people knew about probiotic foods and their benefits, I began posting articles and informative videos to educate my friends and contacts, and soon more people began to show an interest in buying the things I was making. Many reported health benefits like improved digestion, better energy, improvement in allergic conditions, a reduced tendency to fall sick often, weight loss, etc.
This was exciting and I wanted to do more, so I researched and found traditional recipes from different parts of the world and began to make a range of products to provide variety and to appeal to different tastes. This ensured that there was something for everyone, so that all people could move towards improving their digestive and overall health. I was soon approached by Gormei Market and a couple of other retail outlets and fitness centres, who showed an interest in stocking my products.
Abha’s Probiotic Chennai x By Hand From The Heart Makers Market, Chennai
Why is making so important to you?
One of the things about making your own products is that you know exactly what goes into them. It is really sad to see what is being sold these days under the guise of food, even healthy food! There are artificial additives, excess of sugar, salt and trans fats to make the products tasty, attractive and have a longer shelf life. Tall claims are made about the contents and benefits, but the processes that are used in making the products negate many of the health benefits. Chemical fertilizers and pesticides have altered our natural foods and affected our health. All kinds of lifestyle diseases are rampant. So for a long time, whenever possible, I have been making my own butter, ghee, masalas, jams and pickles. I hardly ever buy processed or readymade foods. I much prefer foods made from scratch in my own kitchen, because I can monitor the ingredients, hygienic conditions as well as the making process to ensure the best possible quality and benefits.
What do you wish more shoppers knew about your the benefits of your products?
Abha’s Probiotics products are traditional fermented foods and drinks that have originated in countries around the world and have now become popular among discerning people. I also experiment and come up with my own recipes. What is common to all my probiotic foods is that they contain live cultures and are not pasteurised to increase shelf life. This ensures that they truly have probiotic bacteria and yeasts that provide immense health benefits. Regular consumption of these foods can improve digestion, increase immunity, heal inflammation, allergies and the tendency to catch coughs, colds and other infections and even protect against heart disease and cancer! I personally purchase the ingredients and make and bottle all the products to ensure high quality and food safety.
Introducing Abha’s Probiotics products to your family and encouraging them to replace their sugar or preservative laden soft drinks with these natural, centuries old and proven health foods and drinks that are high in taste, low in sugar and contain no artificial colours, flavours or preservatives may be one of the best decisions you make for improving or maintaining the health of your family!
In a Nutshell:
*All products are 100% Natural, with no artificial colours, flavours or preservatives.
*Most are made from organic ingredients bought from reliable sources and are not exposed to chemical fertilizers, pesticides or hormones.
*All products are 100% Vegetarian.
*Except for Milk Kefir, all products are also Vegan.
*All products are packaged in eco-friendly, recyclable glass bottles.
*All products need to be kept refrigerated in order to last out their shelf lives.
Some things you should know:
*Since these are fermented foods, they contain live bacteria and yeasts. You may find that the colour, taste and flavour may vary slightly from one batch to another.
*Some of the products are very effervescent and may gush out of the bottle if they are not sufficiently chilled or if the bottle is shaken, since carbon dioxide is produced during fermentation. DO NOT SHAKE the bottle to mix the contents!
*Fermentation is the oldest method of food preservation and fermented foods do not spoil easily. However, some can get more and more tart the longer they are kept, and may no longer be palatable for some people. These products do not have an “Expiry” date, but a “Best before” date for this reason. If stored well refrigerated, they can be good long after the recommended date has gone by. However, please DO NOT consume anything that looks, smells or tastes unpleasant!
*Heating or cooking will kill the beneficial bacteria.
*DO NOT FREEZE the glass bottles, or they will break!
*Fermented foods are contraindicated for certain medical conditions, so do check with your doctor if you are taking anticoagulants or have been prescribed a special diet for your condition.
Your work space.
My home has become my work space, mainly my kitchen and dining room. Fortunately, my husband doesn’t mind and I have decided that I will continue at home and keep my overheads as low as possible until my business outgrows both the space and available resources at home.
Describe your work process.
I have been doing everything by myself except the washing of the bottles, which I supervise. I personally do the purchasing, the labelling of the bottles, making of all the products from scratch, checking, tasting, bottling, sealing, taking the orders, making the invoices and delivering the orders. As the business has grown, I have had to use an independent delivery service for individual orders, but I still deliver my retail consignments personally. I know I will have to get additional staff, and I am now on the lookout for a suitable person. I plan to take it one step at a time.
Since I have a variety of products, most of them have different processes and use different cultures. The time frames for getting them ready are also different. So I have to keep track of what is happening with which product. At times it is difficult to do and my mistakes or neglect result in my having to throw away stuff because it is no longer of high standard.
Since refrigerator space is very important, I cannot make more than I can accommodate in my refrigerators (I have one for the home and two for the business), so I need to be alert and anticipate what will be needed in the coming week as I plan what to make and the purchases of the raw materials.
Products like Kimchi, Sauerkraut and Hummus are very labour intensive, so I have had to discontinue them, since I could spare the time to make them only after 10 am, and losing sleep regularly was tough. So I put them on hold and began to make things that required shorter time investment.
What is currently on your work table?
I do multiple tasks every day, and fermentation takes time, so many things are simultaneously on my work table in different stages of development. Just now, Pineapple Tepache, which I began a couple of days ago is in the later stages of fermentation and I will be straining it in a few hours. This morning I started a new batch of Beet Kvass. I expect it will take about 3 or 4 days to get ready. Kefir is an ongoing process, and I make it almost every day, so that too is on the table, but is going into the refrigerator very soon. Both Black Tea Kombucha and Hibiscus Kombucha are on the sideboard. They are continuous brews, so they have to be drawn and topped up every couple of days.
What is your personal favorite pick from your brand right now? And why?
I like all my products… otherwise I wouldn’t be offering them to others. But my personal favourite is Black Tea Kombucha, because it gives me energy and keeps me alert even when I am tired. I love the taste and the energy boost and the knowledge that I’m getting naturally produced B vitamins, enzymes and glucosamine, which takes care of my knee joint, which was damaged in a bad accident many years ago.
What are your displaying at the By Hand, From The Heart.
- Black Tea Kombucha
- Hibiscus & Green Tea Kombucha
- Milk Kefir
- Ginger Ale
- Beet Kvass
- Pineapple Tepache
- Hummus
- Korean Kimchi
- Sauerkraut
I may also introduce one or two new flavours in Kombucha, Kefir and Kvass if time permits (Lemongrass and ginger Kombucha, Kefir ‘Chhaas’ and spiced Kvass/kaanji).
Meet the Maker @
25th edition: By Hand From The Heart Makers Market
8 – 9 – February 2019 | Friday – Saturday | 10 a.m – 9 p.m
Crowne Plaza Chennai Adyar Park, (old Adyar Gate Hotel)
132, T.T.K Road, Alwarpet, Chennai – 600018, India.
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