What is Jun?
Jun or Xun is a fermented health tonic roughly similar to kombucha but feeding on a dominant base of green tea and raw honey rather than cane sugar. Similar to kombucha, fermentation of jun requires culture SCOBY (symbiotic colonies of bacteria and yeast) although there are probiotic strain differences between kombucha SCOBY and that of jun.
Jun is said to be more superior than kombucha in probiotic content, most likely reason is due to the prebiotic environment that raw honey creates during the fermentation process. Although Jun's origin is unclear, it is thought to have originated in northern China and Tibet from thousand of years ago and actually preceded kombucha because of the availability of honey predates production of cane sugar.
WHAT'S IN JUN:
One jun producer in the US (Huney Jun) has tested its products probiotic bacteria content on several occasions, finding two dominant strains in their Jun: Lactobacillus plantarum and Lactobacillus paracasei. Total bacteria count reported was 1.3 Trillion CFU/12oz, far more than ever reported from a test sample of kombucha.
WHY DRINK JUN:
The benefits of kombucha are vast and have been noted to produce a healthy functioning liver, aid in digestion and gut health, support joints, and even boost the immune system. Jun has some of the same as well as added benefits with the use of raw honey over sugar. So if you avoid sugar, jun is an easy way to ingest your probiotic (and it’s especially beneficial for people who don’t enjoy consuming yogurt or taking pills) to ensure that your body is getting the good bacteria it needs.
Read: What are Probiotics? What is Kombucha? What is Kefir? What is Milk Kefir? What is Water Kefir?