Kilner jar taps ok for komboucha?

[timedwards80]

I've bought two of these 5l kilner jars with plastic taps. Anyone know if they are safe to brew komboucha with? I'm primarily concerned just about the plastic tap and plastic fitting on the inside. Komboucha sites advertise them but put a note saying the tap is plastic.

Any ideas?
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[RPh_Guy]

Yeah they're fine. Not sure what you're concerned about.

 

[timedwards80]

Cheap plastic can leach chemicals into your kombucha due to acidity levels over longer periods. To use plastic taps/vessels they have to be a certain type of plastic.

From happy kombucha website:
Plastic. Plastic is cheap and easy but there are cautions if you are using plastic. Only certain types of plastic are suitable for brewing kombucha due to the acidity of the brew. All the plastic containers we sell are suitable. Only BPA free Polypropylene is safe to use. Plastic is generally cheaper than glass but you do need to ensure that it does not become scratched or crack and they are sometimes not as strong (and they nearly always don't look quite as nice!)

So just want to know if the taps and the plastic but inside the Kilner jars are safe for kombucha

 

[RPh_Guy]

Some plastics indeed contain undesirable plasticizers (BPA, DEHP, DBP).

However, if a plastic product is labeled as "food safe", or otherwise sold for some purpose that comes into contact with food or beverage in a country with health standards (which I'm assuming they are because it sounds like they're made for the purpose of serving food), then it is safe to use and does not contain the hazardous plasticizers.

If you have any doubts, you need to get the info from the manufacturer for the particular product you bought.

FYI
The VAST majority of beverages are acidic. There's nothing different about kombucha that requires any kind of special treatment with regard to plastics.
... Aside from the fact that the wild microbes it contains may have an easier time adhering to plastics, which isn't necessarily a problem.

Only BPA free Polypropylene is safe to use.

This isn't true. HDPE, LDPE, PET, silicone, teflon and others are all potentially safe. These many types of plastic are used all across the food, beverage, and medical industries because they are safe when manufactured for that purpose.

Be careful gleaning information from kombucha websites. They tend to contain a lot of false info and nonsensical pseudoscience.