Hello!
I have been fermenting Kefir at home for some time. I read recently that it is wise to have your homemade kefir laboratory tested on occasion to check for infections that can cause health problems. I would be interested to know what people who make Kefir at home think about this. My understanding is that the Kefir bacteria kills pathogens, so as long as you are fairly clean with equipment, it should be fine. Seems many people around the world have been making this sort of thing at home for a long time without worry. Any ideas? Cheers.

Hello
I also read the article that advised having Kefir laboratory tested occasionally to check for infections and I too was concerned. However, like you I have been fermenting my own Kefir for a while and consider that the amazing amount of pro-biotics in the milk as opposed to yoghurt that only has around five, would outweigh any infection in the milk and that is the point of pro-biotics and as you say Kefir has the ability to kill pathogens. The fact that some people do what is called a double fermentation increasing the B Vitamins and increasing even more pro-biotics and to achieve this the milk is strained and that strained milk is then put into a clean jar covered with a muslin cloth and left for another 24 hours to ferment without the grains. Then any grains that may have formed are strained and the milk used in the normal way. Some people even use the same jar each time only cleaning it once a week as they say it kick starts the next batch. So if there was any real concern I cannot imagine that people would be leaving milk out on the kitchen cabinet for around 48 hours or using the same jar to ferment the Kefir without cleaning it. Plus the fact people have been making Kefir for many years using these methods without problems. I don’t have any concerns and will just continue to enjoy the benefits, hope you do too.

Thanks for this, Ellie.
I have decided to continue with the Kefir. I think that often companies that sell products are keen for people to buy them, and that if more people make it much more cheaply at home, they probably worry about their business! I think a big problem is for many years people have been advised to over sanitise their lives, and everything has to be boiled or bleached beyond recognition as a natural product. I think we have suffered a s a result and it has affected people’s health in a negative way. Hooray for homemade Kefir! Long live Kefir!

Hi, I’ve just joined this forum. I’ve been making my own kefir for over a year now and don’t wash my kilner jar more then once a week, if that. I haven’t suffered any ill affects. In fact I haven’t had so much as a cold since I’ve been making my own kefir! I love it!

Hello, I am still experimenting with what works and what doesn’t. My Kefir seems to have a mind of its own and has grown considerably, so much so that I have tried freezing it. What I did was to put it in a zipper bag squeezing out as much air as possible so it lays flat then freezing. I will only keep it in there for a few months. I am reluctant to advertise it for free because of sending it through the post as I don’t have any suitable packaging. Occasionally I do eat a lump to give myself an extra kick of pro-biotic, a bit chewy but healthy. I use goat’s milk purely because for me I find it more digestible as I believe cow’s milk has something called Casein A which is detrimental to the digestion and it was giving me problems. Infact the Kefir made with goat’s milk doesn’t taste any different to that made with cow’s milk. Certainly though it is so much cheaper to make your own especially drinking it on a daily basis. What I have also found is that mostly when fermented it does separate but once I have poured the fermented milk into anothe jar it mixes in well and overnight it really thickens. Happy healthy drinking!