Product FAQs

Product Storage & Care Instructions

Glass storage containers are best for keeping spices fresh and retaining their potency, which is why we use glass jars. Spices are best stored in their jar with the lid sealed tight (i.e., airtight) and kept in a dark, dry place.  Cupboards and pantries are great. Avoid storing spices directly above your cooker/oven or in direct sunlight as constant exposure to heat can affect potency and efficacy over time. 

Our spices are wild harvested and processed and packaged immediately after. By processing we mean dried, smoked, fermented, milled. On average, if properly stored, most spices retain their efficacy for 18 months to 2 years from the time they are processed. This is however a conservative estimate. If it helps, we’ve learned that most of the spices purchased from grocery stores are often as old as 5-7 years upon purchase.

All our spices are gluten free, vegan and free from most common allergens. Our seasoning mixes do not contain any MSG, preservatives or additives. Our partners are very careful during the milling process to ensure that the spices do not come into contact with any other spices or allergens. Most of our partners only process one type of spice so this helps reduce any changes of cross contamination with any other ingredients.

Our products are not yet USDA certified organic. However, almost all of our products are wild harvested (foraged) from forests and bushes from countries in West Africa. Which means they are pretty much what Mother nature produces. For those that are cultivated by our growers, they are grown naturally/organically without the use of any pesticides or harmful chemicals. It’s something that is very important to us. We work to get them tested in labs just to be triple sure. Organic certifications in the countries that we source from is a new concept, or doesn't exist yet because most of the products are just plucked off trees, bushes that grow in the wild. That said, now that Ekaterra is here we are working with growers and local organizations to educate them and get them on track with organic certifications for the benefit of customers abroad. It's a process that will take time.

All our spices are harvested from the wild and processed using centuries old practices mostly by hand. There may be slight variations in color in each batch as all products are natural and we do not use any preservatives or colorants to force unnatural color uniformity.

Yes we do! We offer digital gift cards that you can purchase from our online store here. Gift cards come in varying amounts for you to choose from. Once purchased, the gift card will be emailed to you and then you can forward it onto the lucky recipient.

For custom gift card values pleas send us an email at info@ekaterra.com.

Shipping & Packaging FAQs

Shipping

Orders placed before 11am (ET) will ship in 2 to 3 business days, Monday-Friday if the items are available. Pre-ordered items will as soon as they become available Monday-Friday 

As long as the order has not yet been processed and a shipping label for the order has not been printed, you can cancel your order. If the shipping label has already been printed, unfortunately we cannot cancel an order. 

We currently only ship to Canada, the United Kingdom. However, do be aware that customs duties may apply as an added cost, so take this into account when ordering. Customs fees charged on each order are out of our control and these fees are the customers responsibility upon ordering.

We are working on our global shipping process so that customers everywhere can get their hands on our spices.

Shipping carriers often mark packages as delivered prior to actual delivery in order to meet delivery quotas. If when tracking your package it shows as delivered, consider it a delivery window and keep an eye out for your package. It may be delivered soon. Once your package has left our warehouse, the shipping carrier is responsible for the care of your package and delivery. We cannot be held responsible for lost or stolen packages once they have left our facility. To make a claim for a lost or stolen package, visit the shipping carrier’s website for instructions. If you have any other questions, send us a message and we’ll see what we can do.

Packaging

Currently we do not have the option to add a custom note to orders, but we are working on it and will update all our customers soon.

We do not include packing slips or invoices in our orders, so no worries!

If a package is deemed lost in transit, please send a message and include your order number and tracking number (provided in your shipping confirmation email), and we will follow up with the shipper. 

We do not offer replacements for products that were confirmed delivered by the shipper, but stolen from your delivery location, or for an incorrect address provided at checkout.

Note: For any refunds that are granted, we will only refund the cost of the damaged item(s) within a shipment. 

Apologies! Our team does everything possible to ensure all products are properly inspected and packaged prior to shipping. However, if you received a broken or damaged jar, please send us an email - within 7 days of your order being delivered - with your order number and a photo of the item to info@ekaterra.com and we’ll take care of you.

Apologies! Unfortunately, though we do our absolute best to avoid them every once in a while a mistake may happen. Send us a message with your order number, letting us know what’s missing and we’ll rectify the situation at no additional cost.

Returns & Refunds FAQs

Our goal at Ekaterra is to provide our customers with the highest quality products. Because we are a food business, unfortunately we are unable to accept returns or offer exchanges for any food product due to hygiene and safety protocols. 

If for some reason you are not happy with your order of a non-food item, do send us an email within 14 days of receiving the order to arrange a return of the item(s) and we will work to refund the order. We can only accept returns of unopened unused items with labels intact.

We are unable to offer refunds for items that are returned to us in anything less than the original condition.

You are responsible for return shipping costs.

Note: For any refunds that are granted, we will only refund the cost of the item(s) within a shipment excluding any shipping costs.