“Seeding is the process by which a baby is first colonized by beneficial bacteria,” says Ara Katz. “These foundational microbes colonize the baby’s gastrointestinal system and help set the foundation of her microbiome and immune system.”
Seeding also serves as the inspiration for her latest venture. Seed is a company producing your daily source of synbiotics, a combination of prebiotics and probiotics, that the serial entrepreneur co-founded with microbiome expert Raja Dhir.
“I met Raja when I was pregnant, and through my pregnancy and breastfeeding experience, paired with a mutual fascination for microbiome, especially its critical impact during infant development, prompted a question, ‘how can we set up a child for a healthy life?’ One question led to many possibilities of the microbiome – how bacteria will impact the health of ourselves and our planet – and culminated in a shared vision to set a new standard of health.”
That new standard is a daily synbiotic, the most sophisticated probiotic and prebiotic on the market formulated in collaboration with Dr. Gregor Reid, a professor of Microbiology and Immunology at Western University. Like a probiotic, Seed helps keep your digestive tract healthy and balanced. Then, it takes it one step further by also promoting skin health, heart health and immune health.
The word bacteria might conjure up some grotesque imagery, but it’s something we can’t live without, and it’s essential to our health. According to Dr. Reid, “Beneficial microbes can play a systems-wide role in human health alongside diet, exercise, and lifestyle. Our Daily Synbiotic reflects a commitment to reclaim the term ‘probiotics’ for science and to establish a new standard.”
“Our daily synbiotic is also distinguished by sex,” starts Katz. “The female formulation includes a dermatological health blend and is also the first to include probiotic strains that increase folate production within the body. The male formulation contains two unique strains which emerged from a clinical study evaluating muscle recovery after high-intensity exercise.” Both formulations, however, are safe to take for either sex.
But there’s more to Seed that just health benefits. The amount of sustainability in their packaging also plays a fundamental role in the company as they believe human and planetary health are one and the same.
Each component of the sustainable refill system is designed to be gentler to the planet. “The system begins with a Welcome Kit,” says Katz, “which includes your glass jar and complimentary delivery that is shipped in a compostable mycelium tray. Each subsequent monthly refill ships in home-compostable oxygen and moisture protected pouches.”
The refill pouch produced by eco-friendly packaging solution company Elevate is made of bio-based raw materials—it’s also in the process of at-home compostability certification. The corn foam that protects the pouch throughout the shipping process made by Green Cell Foam is biodegradable, backyard compostable, edible and dissolves in water.
“Corn foam also requires 70% less energy and produces 80% fewer greenhouse gases than normal insulators,” chimes in Katz. The mycelium tray that protects your product during transport is even created with the root structure of mushrooms and can decompose in soil within 30 days.
While there are plenty of probiotics out there and you could gorge yourself on prebiotics like asparagus, Seed wants to cultivate and educate a global community to think differently about their health.
“As a founder, I strive to know we have nudged the world forward and made an impact both in human and planetary health,” Katz says.
