Mr Viral
The Calmer Co is best known for its Fijikava instant kava beverage powders, which is a powdered drink that is mixed with water much like an instant coffee or with other fruity drinks.
This is akin to the traditional method of kava consumption in the Pacific islands, and the company has recently moved this forward with the development of cold-pressed kava juice products consumed as shots, which it claims to have even stronger functional benefits.
“Traditional kava drinkers will take the root, dry this in the sun, pound this into a powder, then mix the powder with a straining process that removes the fibre etc. – our Fijikava micronized powders improved on this process by removing the need for straining, and now we also have the cold-pressed version,” The Calmer Co CEO Anthony Noble told FoodNavigator-Asia.
“This cold-pressed kava uses the green roots of the kava plant, not dried roots, and these come straight from the farm and then are pressed immediately to make the RTD shots for direct drinking.
“These shots are some 500% more powerful than the powders in terms of stress relief and calmness, and also taste much better as the processing preserves the natural, rich flavours of the kava root and removes grittiness and any bitter aftertaste [for] a smoother, more palatable beverage.”
The cold-pressed shots are sold under the Taki Mai brand as 50ml small format shots in amber glass bottles similar to dietary shots of functional fruit juices, and these have served as the company’s major product in Australia as of late.
“We’ve seen success with this format here in Australia, and believe that this can apply to other markets as well, particularly the United States which is our next target market for the RTD shots,” Noble said.
“The Australian version is usually shaken and consumed immediately or as an ingredient in fruit juices, and for the US we will be doing a 2-ounce shot that is already flavoured so can just be shaken and consumed in one serving.
“This would be quite similar to shot formats like the 5-hour Energy Drink which consumers in the US are already familiar with, just that we focus on on-the-go stress relief and the traditional benefits of kava in a modern, convenient format.
“The RTD kava shot can give an alcohol-like buzz instantly with no mixing or preparation needed, hence the relaxation and stress relief benefits, but it is in fact alcohol-free and non-addictive.”
Bigger formats to comeWhen queried about plans to develop larger RTD kava beverages moving forward, Noble responded that these are part of future development strategies but not yet in the works.
“We can definitely do that in terms of drinks and long drinks in cans or Tetra Pak, and to be mixed with coconut water or other mixers, and this is something we will be looking to do in the future but not at this stage,” he said.
“The main focus at the moment for us is in the smaller formats, and a lot of that has to do with the fact that the phase of the business that we’re in at the moment is primarily focused on e-commerce based selling.
“So moving those smaller formats through the post and delivering to people in bulk format is a little bit more economical than long drink format, although we definitely do want to enter that market eventually.
“In terms of the retail side of things, we’ve got a good relationship with Coles and want to expand our retail distribution in Australia as there’s a high level of market awareness of the product here now
“In the US we’re the leader in the instant kava category on Amazon and will be putting a fair bit of investment and firepower behind launching new products such as the shots there on Amazon and other e-commerce channels over the next couple of months.”
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