Background Art The Kombucha fungus is a symbiotic colony of several species of bacteria and yeasts with complex metabolic pathways. The composition of the colony varies and may contain Bacterium xylinum, B. gluconicum, B. Xylinoides, B. ketogenum, Saccharomyces ludwigi, S. pombe, S. apiculatus, Pichia fermentans and other yeasts.

Traditionally, Kombucha is grown on a substrate of black tea with sucrose in aerobic conditions. The fermented tea can contain up to 1.5% alcohol plus a variety of other metabolites such as glucose, fructose, acetic acid, lactic acid, ethyl acetate, glucoronic acid, carbonic acid, complex of vitamins B', B2, B3, B6, B12 with folic acid, many other vitamins, amino acids and antibiotic substances.

Beneficial and therapeutic effects have been attributed to the consumption of Kombucha. These include detoxification properties, antibacterial properties, invigorative powers, stimulation of the immune system, and treatment of insomnia, gastric illnesses, headaches of a nervous origin, rheumatism, arthritis, gout, high blood pressure, arteriosclerosis, kidney stones, high cholesterol, fatigue, sclerosis, furunculosis, early stages of cancer, cataracts, aging problems such as hot flashes, and hardening of the capillary vessels of the brain. In addition, Kombucha is said to stimulate growth of hair and return color to grayed hair.

Recently, bottled Kombucha tea has become available on the Israeli market.

However, the fermentation process continues in the bottled Kombucha tea.

Disclosure of the Invention In contradistinction according to the present invention there is now provided a non-fermenting Kombucha containing product which product is stabilized by stopping the fermentation at the necessary stage. For beverages and concentrates, fermentation is stopped by filtration, for syrups, confitures and hard candies by increasing the sugar content.

Thus, according to the present invention there is now provided a non- fermenting Kombucha-containing health food product, said product having an alcohol content of less than 1.5% and a content of sugars selected from the group consisting of fructose, glucose, sucrose and mixtures thereof of at least 0.25%.

In preferred embodiments of the present invention said product has an acetic acid content, on a dry-weight basis of up to 1% and most preferably an acetic acid content, on a dry-weight basis of less than 0.8%.

The invention also provides a process for the preparation of a non- fermenting Kombucha-containing health food product, said product having an alcohol content of less than 1.5% and a content of sugars selected from the group consisting of fructose, glucose, sucrose and mixtures thereof of at least 0.25%, characterized in that in the production thereof fermentation is terminated by filtering through a filter of up to 0.6p and preferably by filtering through a filter of up to 0.45cm.

In another aspect of the present invention there is provided a process for the preparation of a non-fermenting Kombucha-containing health food product, said product having an alcohol content of less than 1.5% and a content of sugars selected from the group consisting of fructose, glucose, sucrose and mixtures thereof of at least 0.25%, characterized in that in the production thereof fermentation is terminated by increasing the sugar content on a dry-weight basis to above 60%.

As will be realized from the above, the present invention allows production of a series of stabilized, concentrated, alcohol-free (or reduced) health enhancing Kombucha products which have a higher content of active metabolites (and are thus more effective), preferably have a reduced acetic acid content (and are thus less acidic), and improved taste and smell. The reduced amount of acetic acid is important to the food industry. Acetic acid causes spoilage of some foods, thus, Kombucha with a reduced acetic acid content can be used as a food additive. The beverage can be used to preserve foods such as fruits, olives, mushrooms, etc.

The thick syrup can be used as an ingredient in low-calorie confitures.

Cooked fruits which would otherwise spoil in a medium with such a low sugar content are preserved in this syrup.

The herein described process for growing Kombucha produces a very concentrated fermented tea, reducing the energy needed during the production process and making the production very favorable from energy and economic points of view.

Description of Preferred Embodiments Whiie the invention will now be described in connection with certain preferred embodiments in the following examples so that aspects thereof may be more fully understood and appreciated, it is not intended to limit the invention to these particular embodiments. On the contrary, it is intended to cover all alternatives, modifications and equivalents as may be included within the scope of the invention as defined by the appended claims. Thus, the following examples which include preferred embodiments will serve to illustrate the practice of this invention, it being understood that the particulars shown are by way of example and for purposes of illustrative discussion of preferred embodiments of the present invention only and are presented in the cause of providing what is believed to be the most useful and readily understood description of formulation procedures as well as of the principles and conceptual aspects of the invention.

EXAMPLE 1 An aqueous solution containing sugar (30-500 g/l of various kinds) and an infusion of tea (black and/or herbal and/or fruit tea, 1-15 gIl) is prepared.

"Kargashok" tea (10% in volume) is added to the solution.

A culture of Kombucha is added to the solution.

The solution is allowed to ferment in aerobic conditions at a temperature of 14-40"C. The rate of fermentation depends on the temperature (optimum temperature is 23°C) and the aerobic conditions (which can be adjusted according to the desired end product and working conditions).

Fermentation is terminated when the desired pH is reached (2.0-3.5) and according to taste and/or analysis of the solution (alcohol content, relative concentrations of the different sugars, acetic acid content, glucoronic acid concentration, etc.). The pH, taste and analysis at the end of the fermentation process differ with different substrates and different end products (see blow). The solution at this stage is called Kargashok tea.

An aqueous solution containing sugar (60-1,000 g/l of various kinds) and an infusion of tea (5-150 g/l black and/or herbal and/or fruit tea) is prepared. The solution is added to the Kargashok tea (at least one liter of solution for one liter of Kargashok tea). The solution is allowed to ferment according to paragraphs 4 and 5.

The process is continued until the desired chemical analysis is reached.

The solution is filtered according to the desired product. The degree of filtration varies from rough to 0. 2,u.

After passing through a 0.6p or finer filter, the resultant product is a beverage.

The filtered solution can be concentrated by vacuum heating or by freeze drying to produce other products. The pressure/temperature conditions vary with the desired end product. The end of the vacuum heating process is determined by measuring the solution with a refractometer (which measures the dry content in the solution in units called bricks; the desired amount is 15-90 bricks, depending on the desired product) or by other indicators such as: viscosity, boiling point or analysis.

The final products are in the form of a beverage, a concentrate, thick syrup, confitures, low-calorie confitures, hard candy or granulated tea. Confiture is produced by cooking fruits (strawberries, cherries, etc.) in the beverage at a temperature up to 105"C. Carbonic acid can be added to the beverage.

A chemical analysis of a sample of the beverage and a chemical analysis of a sample of the thick syrup is provided hereinafter in Table 1.

Table 1. SAMPLE FRUCTOSE GLUCOSE SUCROSE LACTIC ACETIC GLUCONIC ETHANOL ACID ACID ACID BEVERAGE % 7.56 9.47 0.082 0.210 0.196 2.74 0.3 % IN DRY 35.5 44.5 0.4 0.9 0.9 12.7 1.4 MATTER THICK % 4.065 36.9 3.97 0.027 0.050 2.29 - SYRUP % IN DRY 48.0 43.2 4.7 0.03 0.06 2.7 - MATTER EXAMPLE 2 - BEVERAGE An aqueous solution containing 150 g/l of sucrose and an infusion of 5 g/l of Chinese green tea is prepared. Ten percent (in volume) of Kargashok tea is added to the solution. A culture of Kombucha is added to the solution. The solution. is allowed to ferment in aerobic conditions at 25"C. Fermentation is terminated when pH of 2.7 is reached. The solution is filtered through a 0.45put. filter.

EXAMPLE 3 - THICK SYRUP One liter of an aqueous solution containing 1509. sucrose, 5g. infusion-of Chinese green tea and 100 ml. Kargashok tea is prepared. A culture of Kombucha is added. The solution is allowed to ferment in aerobic conditions at 25"C.

Fermentation is terminated when a pH of 2.7 is reached. One liter of a second aqueous solution containg 700 g/l sucrose and 15 g/l infusion of Chinese green tea is prepared. The second solution is added to the first solution and is allowed to ferment according to paragraphs 4 and 5, above, until pH 2.7 is reached. The solution is filtered roughly. The filtered solution is concentrated by vacuum heating at approximately 60"C until 80 bricks.

EXAMPLE 4 - GRAPE CONFITURE One liter of an aqueous solution containing 150g. sucrose, Sg. infusion of Chinese green tea and 100 ml. Kargashok tea is prepared. A culture of Kombucha is added. The solution is allowed to ferment in aerobic conditions at 25"C.

Fermentation is terminated when a pH of 2.7 is reached. One liter of a second aqueous solution containing 700 g/l sucrose and 15 g/l infusion of Chinese green tea is prepared. The second solution is added to the first solution and is allowed to ferment according to paragraphs 4 and 5, above, until pH 2.5 is reached. The solution is filtered roughly and boiled. One kilogram of grapes is added and the solution is cooked (for about 45 min.) until the temperature of 105"C is reached.

EXAMPLE 5 - LOW-CALORIE GRAPE CONFITURE One liter of an aqueous solution containing 150g. sucrose, 5g. infusion of Chinese green tea and 100 ml. Kargashok tea is prepared. A culture of Kombucha is added. The solution is allowed to ferment in aerobic conditions at 25"C.

Fermentation is terminated when a pH of 2.7 is reached. One liter of a second aqueous solution containing 700 g/l sucrose and 15 g/l infusion of Chinese green tea is prepared. The second solution is added to the first solution and is allowed to ferment according to paragraphs 4 and 5, above, until pH 2.5 is reached. The solution is filtered roughly and boiled. Three kilograms of grapes are added to the solution and cooked (for about 45 min.) until the temperature 1 050C is reached.

EXAMPLE 6 - HARD CANDY Thick syrup is prepared as described above. The syrup is boiled until a temperature 150"C is reached. A spoonful of syrup are dropped into cold water to create individual candies.

EXAMPLE 7 - FREEZE-DRIED GRANULES Thick syrup is prepared as described above. The syrup is dried by freeze- drying.

It will be evident to those skilled in the art that the invention is not limited to the details of the foregoing illustrative examples and that the present invention may be embodied in other specific forms without departing from the essential attributes thereof, and it is therefore desired that the present embodiments and examples be considered in all respects as illustrative and not restrictive, reference being made to the appended claims, rather than to the foregoing description, and all changes which come within the meaning and range of equivalency of the claims are therefore intended to be embraced therein.