Kettle & Hive is an Indigenous-owned local business based out of Victoria, B.C., and semi-finalist of the 2021 Pow-Wow Pitch. Trish and her husband work together full-time in the company to make Citron Tea, a fresh twist on an old favorite – Lemon honey Tea. It’s a unique concentrated herbal tea mix, made from fresh lemons and honey, and it’s as simple as a spoonful into hot water! Naturally caffeine-free It is both soothing and nourishing like a hug in a mug!
Citron tea is made from the pulp of the fresh lemons giving it a unique texture and richness that you don’t get from lemon juice, It is pasteurized so It is safe for pregnant women and kids, and It will keep in the fridge for about 6 months. It can be used in many different ways, not only is it great as a hot or cold tea, but also as a salad dressing or a glaze- the possibilities are endless!
Question: How are you supporting other local businesses?
Answer: We source as many ingredients as we can from local companies. The main ingredient in our product is honey that comes from a BC company, and we buy from Islands West which is also based in B.C. at least 50% of our ingredients are local.
Our banking is with Vancity, our accountant is local to Victoria and our labels are from Summit labels in Vancouver. We get many services locally including ink refills and photography, and our insurance is a Canadian company in Edmonton. We are in the process of switching to a supplier in Eastern Canada for our containers so we are able to support even more Canadian business.
When we ship on Vancouver Island, We use a local company Kyte Delivery Service. and hand deliver anything within 25km.
Question: What social and environmental practices are you proud of?
Answer: We use glass jars with recyclable lids that can be returned to us, and if we can reuse them we do; any jars that cannot be reused get recycled. When we ship products, we try to repurpose packaging from shipments we have received, like the cardboard inserts that the jars come with and the paper that the lids are wrapped in. We reuse as much packaging as we can to keep it from the landfill.
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