Locally grown vegetables that are never sprayed, herbs and spices, all slow-fermented
on Salt Spring Island, Coast Salish Territory.

Check out our unique varieties and find out where you can buy Culturalive! Fermented Foods near you.
Wholesale customers please contact email address.

melanie

Our Story

2001 was a harsh year for me. I was running my body on empty. I was working 3 part-time jobs, going to school full-time and commuting from Salt Spring Island to Vancouver every week. Eventually, my immune system broke down and I was diagnosed with fibromyalgia.

I made my first gallon of kimchi. I just used a basic recipe from Paul Pitchford’s Healing with Whole Foods, a book that at that point in my life I called “my bible”. I hoped that the kimchi would help my body absorb more nutrients so that my body could heal. As well as going on a sweetener and gluten free diet all summer, I am convinced that it worked. I also spent that summer growing my own vegetables grains and beans. I thought that if I could connect to the land that nourished me, then I could connect to my body that needed to be nourished.

culturalive products

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The Way We Do It

At Culturalive we ferment our vegetables the traditional way to ensure the flavour and nutrients of the vegetables are as alive and vital as when they were first harvested.

We invite wild bacteria to culture our vegetables and never pasteurize so the goodness that gives our ferments their distinct flavour and vitality are still present for you to enjoy.

traditions

Living Traditions

The practice of consuming fermented foods has been part of societies around the world for almost the entire human existence. The fermentation process preserves nutrients and enzymes, and adds probiotics so we can eat live all year around-without the expense of importing foods. ~resilience at its best!~

Fermenting vegetables produces beneficial bacteria and active enzymes to aid digestive health. Our ferments have at least one million probiotics per gram.

carrots

wild bacteria + fresh local ingredients + love = alchemical abundance!

~local ~ raw ~ wild~

Combining locally grown produce, medicinal herbs and wild crafted plants. Nutrient, probiotic and enzyme rich. Healing with our earth’s abundance.