Kingfisher Natural Toothpaste began to be manufactured in 1988. Richard Austin, Kingfisher's founder and owner, started one of the UK's first "wholefood shops" in 1976. Behind the counter, he came to the conclusion that people would want to buy toothpaste that didn't contain artificial colors, flavors, sweeteners and preservatives to do its job (after all, when you brush your teeth, some of the toothpaste you use is absorbed into your teeth and gums). But it wasn't easy to get it done. Finally, when it was possible to manufacture a toothpaste that met Richard's strict requirements, it was launched at the Homeopathic Conference in 1988 (Richard's partner, Annie, is a homeopath).
Fortunately, people liked the toothpaste right away and many have used Kingfisher ever since. With all Kingfisher ingredients listed on the packaging right from the start, the first flavor, fennel, was such a success that they continued to introduce more flavors and varieties. Most recently in June 2017, Naturally Whitening Charcoal was added. These days, Richard still works in the Rainbow Wholefoods shop every Saturday morning (before heading to Carrow Road) and Kingfisher is still the UK's leading natural toothpaste