Vermont Business Magazine Aqua ViTea, a Middlebury-based kombucha company and the largest producer of kombucha on the East Coast, is utilizing its resources to donate 20 cases - 480 bottles - of the brand's handcrafted hand sanitizer to the state’s largest hunger relief organization, Vermont Foodbank, ahead of the Thanksgiving holiday.
When the pandemic first hit, Founder Jeff Weaber and his team leveraged the brand’s supply of excess alcohol that gets extracted from their kombucha, and partnered with local companies including Citizen Cider, Farrell Distributing, and Caledonia Spirits to create hand sanitizer and surface cleaner for frontline workers in Vermont.
Food insecurity has increased dramatically as a result of the pandemic and the Vermont Foodbank and its network have been on the front lines, working to ensure that we all have the food we need during this challenging time. In fact, the Vermont Foodbank has donated 14.3 million pounds of food to community members in need between March-September, which is more than double what was distributed during the same time last year. Knowing how important the Vermont Foodbank’s work is, Aqua ViTea is continuing to lend a helping hand by donating its hand sanitizer to keep the food bank’s staff and community members safe.
Regarding the efforts of Aqua ViTea, Vermont Foodbank CEO, John Sayles, says, "As the pandemic shakes our communities to the core, the Vermont Foodbank is on the front lines distributing more food than ever before in our history. Aqua ViTea’s donation of hand sanitizer helps to ensure the health and safety of our staff and in turn our communities. This is critical as we continue to serve those facing hunger during the pandemic in a way that keeps us all safe.”