Budget kava?

[Ryan Hovis]

Hey guys. I don't have much experience with kava. I was drinking it regularly for about a month over a year ago but stopped due to cost. I'm on a pretty tight budget here. I'm looking to get back into it but need some suggestions on good kava on a budget. I'm also looking for a solid option to take before certain classes to ease my anxiety. Maybe an instant? When I drink kava I usually like pretty strong effects. Thanks.

 

[Kojo Douglas]

Well, it's only getting more expensive with all of the climate-change induced impacts on Kava farming and the Kava markets.

But I'd say right now Waka Kava on Amazon is a great deal. Nakamal at Home also has great values, as well as Cactus Kava and Bula Kava House.

 

[kavadude]

Well, medium grind is the best budget option, so if you want to take it before classes and are restricted, you'll just have to prepare it ahead of time.

What is your budget, and how much kava do you typically use?

 

[Mesh]

I 2nd Waka kava on amazon. It was my first ever kava, I remember it hitting pretty hard. Good anti-anxiety and made me super chill. However, I don't remember if there were any next day effects bad or good.

 

[chandra]

Micro might be cheaper than instant, and for me the effects of micro are felt more in the head than in the body. I know what you mean about cost. I would probably double or triple my kava consumption if it wasn't for my budget. Quality has a big impact on how effective it is, and how much you will have to use to get effects. If you are looking to buy a small amount, kalm with kava offers micros starting at $17 I think, but its a small amount. I find Gourmet Hawaiin Kava to be the best in terms of strength and quality for the price. Their medium grinds are right around $30, but you get free shipping. One bag of medium grind lasts me about a week. They also have micros and instants.

 

[I don't know]

You can freeze your medium grind once made into a drink and then grab and go.

 

[nabanga]

Where are you in the US?
@shakas posted a while back of finding 100g bags of Savaii, Samoa kava at his local shop which are excellent (was it $6?)
Also someone else reported good fiji waka at their local fiji Indian shop in norcal.

 

[Deleted User01]

I agree with @chandra, I feel like I get more bang for my buck with XYZ macaless noble micronized. But powda is probably still less expensive if you have time for preparation. When I did traditional prep in the old days, I would make (2) 16oz bottles at a time (tell me if you've heard this one before). Sure, the taste is worse when you store prepped kava but the convenience overcomes this and you still got good effects. So do the per ounce calculations on the powders recommended by the members. When you win the lottery, come back to me and I'll tell ya the real way to go. Heh, heh, heh, heh. Or Bwah, ha,ha, ha, ha. ....
Oh, Halloween noises. I love halloween. But what Zombie snowman doesn't.

 

[Kava Time]

I wouldnt recommend buying cheaper kava other than the standard price of what GHK provides because you may experience a whole lot of side effects, maybe not now but eventually in a few years time.
Its best to brew medium grind in the morning and keep it in a water bottle to take in before your classes, thats the cheapest option you have compared to other grinds. Instant is just way too expensive. i think even micro is expensive unless if it is like what GHK does i.e taking makas out before drying and grinding. Most micros seem to be just a finer version of medium grinds which doesn't really justify its higher cost

 

[Kojo Douglas]

At the same time, don't assume that lower-priced Kava is lower-quality Kava!

 

[Kava Time]

At the same time, don't assume that lower-priced Kava is lower-quality Kava!

I dont know man, considering the recent cyclones and droughts in the south pacific, its highly likely you will get low quality stuff unless if the kavas were sourced before these natural disasters which would mean they are old stock.
Gone are the days of getting reasonable priced quality kava now, well i am certain for Fiji atleast.

 

[nabanga]

I wouldnt recommend buying cheaper kava other than....

I think its fine to buy cheap kava provided you know what you are buying, and have been drinking long enough to recognise what is good and what is not.
The 100g Samoan bags (for example) are sold all over Samoa in little village shops, are packaged by individual farmers on a relatively small scale, and are branded by them so you get to know your preferred farm brands. In Samoa they are about $3/bag, in the US about $6 I read here - so this is still about half the price of many mail-order kavas, and the quality is there.
These are probably cheap because they are imported through family by the store owner along with a load of taro & breadfruit, minimising middlemen.
Sure, there is also rubbish being sold cheap, but not all is rubbish.

 

[Kava Time]

I think its fine to buy cheap kava provided you know what you are buying, and have been drinking long enough to recognise what is good and what is not.
The 100g Samoan bags (for example) are sold all over Samoa in little village shops, are packaged by individual farmers on a relatively small scale, and are branded by them so you get to know your preferred farm brands. In Samoa they are about $3/bag, in the US about $6 I read here - so this is still about half the price of many mail-order kavas, and the quality is there.
These are probably cheap because they are imported through family by the store owner along with a load of taro & breadfruit, minimising middlemen.
Sure, there is also rubbish being sold cheap, but not all is rubbish.

Oh yeah these individual small scale sellers are there but im referring to more of the large scale sellers who sell online mostly or in large quantities. The unique small scale sellers arent so easily accessible to many people unlike the ones online who deal with many people

 

[TheKavaSociety]

Let's put it this way. If you check the price of proper waka in Suva/Fiji (retail) and you see someone selling "fijian waka" for the same price (or only slightly more) in America, New Zealand or Burundi, then you can safely assume they almost certainly not selling pure waka or even pure kava. I've read somwhere that the post-cyclone price of waka in Suva was around 40-50 USD per kg (@Neil correct me if I am wrong). So anything that costs 40-50 USD per kg outside of Fiji must inevitably be of substantially lower quality.

 

[nabanga]

Let's put it this way. If you check the price of proper waka in Suva/Fiji (retail) and you see someone selling "fijian waka" for the same price (or only slightly more) in America, New Zealand or Burundi, then you can safely assume they almost certainly not selling pure waka or even pure kava. I've read somwhere that the post-cyclone price of waka in Suva was around 40-50 USD per kg (@Neil correct me if I am wrong). So anything that costs 40-50 USD per kg outside of Fiji must inevitably be of substantially lower quality.

Perhaps often, but not necessarily as a blanket judgement Henry.

The price is considerably down from the post cyclone peak now, friends in Suva tell me.
Also the suva/nadi market price includes farmer profit and dealer profit. A shop owner outside of fiji may well be buying relatively small amounts (20kg...) direct from his friends/ uncles farm, not the main clearing market.
I buy fijian waka at $45 - 50/kg ex NZ and it is very good. Also I have bought good Vavau kava in Auckland from a tongan family for $15/kg(wedding leftovers).

 

[TheKavaSociety]

True. Not always then. Post wedding kava or informally sold kava (no taxes, licenses, etc) is usually cheap and sometimes can be very good.

But I think we can agree that it can be a bit of a roulette, especially if you buy from unfamiliar sources

 

[TheKavaSociety]

Besides, i used the 40-50 figure as an example to say that good kava is unlikely to cost less in LA than in Suva

 

[Kava Time]

Let's put it this way. If you check the price of proper waka in Suva/Fiji (retail) and you see someone selling "fijian waka" for the same price (or only slightly more) in America, New Zealand or Burundi, then you can safely assume they almost certainly not selling pure waka or even pure kava. I've read somwhere that the post-cyclone price of waka in Suva was around 40-50 USD per kg (@Neil correct me if I am wrong). So anything that costs 40-50 USD per kg outside of Fiji must inevitably be of substantially lower quality.

Its about 30 USD farm gate price for the waka. Thats just the waka alone directly from the farmer so if you include shipping to US it gets to 40 - 45USD per kilo on average. Not forgetting the markup made by the mode of sale (card processing average 5% or 25% for amazon) plus taxes ( average 8%) plus domestic shipping ($5 - 8 USD average/ pound). Your lowest cost of fiji waka now is close to $26/lb alone if you have your own website or sell on amazon and is about 20USD/lb if you sell locally in USA. This is considering the best case scenario that you are sourcing from the farm, but its impossible for you to do so because no farmer does direct exporting in Fiji. It always goes through suva or nadi and through a middle man who makes their own margin because there is alot of paperwork and bureaucracy involved with exporting from Fiji which is a major hassle for the average farmer.

This is just assuming basic costs and if all other things are added up (bills, labour, your own profit margin etc) it is impossible to be selling Fiji waka medium grind at less than US$50/lb now in USA post cyclone. I sat down and did the costing myself and realized that i as a seller based in Fiji trying to sell Fiji kava using 3PL would actually make a loss if i sold my waka for $47/lb which has made me rethink my whole strategy. I didnt consider some crucial costs which could have put me at a loss on my trial run itself. And this is of course considering the strong exchange rate of the US dollar, imagine if it weakens? Honestly the kava business in Fiji has become so expensive i wonder what the future holds of it in Fiji for the next 2-3 years as farms replenish. If there is another cyclone kava might become more expensive than gold in Fiji, it already has become more expensive than alcohol!

I guess the price hike hasnt affected USA because of pre cyclone stock being with wholesalers but you will see the price hike soon enough when it comes. If not then you will see the quality of fiji kava deteriorate which is more likely going to be the case considering the nature of importers looking for cheap stuff to make greater profit margins

 

[Kava Time]

Hey guys. I don't have much experience with kava. I was drinking it regularly for about a month over a year ago but stopped due to cost. I'm on a pretty tight budget here. I'm looking to get back into it but need some suggestions on good kava on a budget. I'm also looking for a solid option to take before certain classes to ease my anxiety. Maybe an instant? When I drink kava I usually like pretty strong effects. Thanks.

I think you will be safer purchasing samoan or tongan medium grind kava if you are on a tight budget because they produce very little kava compared to fiji and vanuatu and will likely be of better quality and value.

 

[Groggy]

Well, medium grind is the best budget option, so if you want to take it before classes and are restricted, you'll just have to prepare it ahead of time.

What is your budget, and how much kava do you typically use?

I agree, medium grind from any vendor here is the best value.