A joint publication by Nestle Research and SeqBiome has provided new insights into the relationship between the microbial community of water kefir and flavour. Yet another example of the relevance of the microbiome when developing new functional foods. Highlights include

• A temporal characterization of a model water kefir using multi-omics approaches.
• Revealing the high prevalence of Z. mobilis and discovery of two potential new Curvibacter species in the samples.
• Identification of a unique chemical profile, dominated by gluconic acid.
• Uncovering microbial contributors to water kefir flavours obtained through omics correlation.
• And, ultimately, providing, important insights that will enable large scale water kefir production.