We are following in the footsteps of fermenters across the globe who have been using the magic of fermentation to transform food for millennia.
We’ve taken cues from modern fermentation “revivalists” who are disrupting today’s dominant, highly controlled food production systems by presenting delicious, healthy, and revolutionary alternatives.
By The Brook Ferments is stirring in our own story of what fermented foods can be can be in a world that is more receptive of plant-based and anti-establishment foods than ever before.
The originators of tempeh were Indonesian, fermenting soybeans wrapped in banana leaves hundreds of years ago. In the late 60’s and early 70’s, tempeh made its way to American cooking, finding its way into the homes and kitchens of people seeking out nutritious foods and inspired by revivalists like our teacher Sandor Katz.
We make our products fresh weekly from regionally-sourced grains, legumes, and produce.
Our customers are all members of our local central Carolina community.
Though they satisfy all diets, our products are naturally probiotic, gluten-free, soy-free, and vegan. Our sauerkraut is made with local, seasonal produce. Our tempeh is made with non-GMO beans, fermented by a mushroom culture to form a nutrient-dense, highly digestible protein packed with flavor and a bold texture. Our local terroir piques our creativity and inspires creations like pinto bean and black-eyed pea tempeh, like chow chow-style sauerkraut.
Our Story
Hi, my name is Taylor (he/him), and I am the creator of By The Brook Ferments in my home of Saxapahaw, North Carolina. Our company speaks to my last name, Westbrook, which means “by the water.”
Being a life-long food enthusiast, chef by trade, quirky creative, and natural tinkerer, I was quick to become captivated by the experimental art of fermentation. This ancient craft of flavoring and preserving food by culturing it, listening to it, and making adjustments accordingly has fueled my wild interest in the kitchen.
I find the art of fermentation to be highly relevant for modern cultural conversations of sustainability, accessibility, and food ethics. As many before have said in different ways, fermentation creates community. Chemically and socially, fermentation thrives on interaction and diversity.
My mission is to culture community health by unleashing my culinary creativity on the agricultural bounty of our shared ecosystem. I hope you’ll see the beauty of fermented foods for their nutritional qualities, versatility, and capability to nourish not only our bodies but also our local communities. Stocked in one pantry, all in one bite.
Yours truly,
Taylor
I’d love to connect with you! Please reach out.
Our Vision
We have 3 main goals for contributing to a more sustainable future:
1) Support the human microbiome.
The alchemical process of fermentation has been part of human life for longer than has fire. Fermented foods support our bodies’ internal ecosystems: promoting microbial diversity in the gut facilitates digestion, strengthens immunity, promotes your overall health.
2) Reciprocate our local food culture, accessibly.
We source ingredients from ethical purveyors here in our region of the Carolinas—including Anson Mills, Seneca Grain and Bean, and Tidewater Grain Co. Please note we only sell our product locally: all of our points of sale are within 75 miles of Saxapahaw, North Carolina.
We know fermentation can be esoteric, so we aim to present quality products always with clarity, warmth, and importantly, fair prices. Committing to a creative practice in the kitchen will support our dedication to offer a variety of products. There’s something for everyone.
3) Stay local (for now).
We’re sticking to the recipe of local in this business, selling all of our products specifically here in central North Carolina. Unfortunately this means that if you are outside of this area, your only purchasing option is taking your cooler on a road trip (in which case we’d be very grateful for your business!).
Though we wish to serve as many communities as we can, we’re committed to seeing this local ethos all the way through, unless nature directs a different course. We’d like to treat the business model of By The Brook the same way we do with the contents of our crocks: tending to a brew by patiently following its lead as it cultures over time.
“Ideas ferment as they spread and mutate and inspire movements for change.”