Editorial: Make kombucha tax free

Published 12:00 am Thursday, April 4, 2019

Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Ore., and U.S. Reps. Earl Blumenauer, D-Portland, and Greg Walden, R-Hood River, introduced federal legislation March 28 that, if approved, would exempt most kombucha from the current $18 per barrel federal tax on beer.

It should be approved.

Kombucha, a fermented tea drink, contains a bit of alcohol. The amount isn’t high, generally somewhere between 0.5 percent and 1.25 percent by volume. So-called nonalcoholic beer generally contains less than 0.5 percent alcohol and is thus free from the tax.

Kombucha is becoming big business in Oregon, which is a boon to local economies.

The five American cities with strongest sales in recent years are in Oregon, Washington and California. Meanwhile, Bend’s own Humm Kombucha is, according to Transparency Market Research, a “key” player in the kombucha market.

Excusing kombucha from the federal tax on beer doesn’t mean the sidewalks will suddenly be swamped by kombucha-swilling 16-year-olds. The alcohol level in kombucha is generally so low it would take eight bottles or more to feel the effects.

Congress should pay more attention to the 2019 version of the kombucha bill than it did to the identical 2017 measure that failed to gain traction.

It’s a worthy cause and one that to date has failed to divide folks along party lines. The chance for a bipartisan victory for kombucha manufacturers should not be allowed to slip away.