Skip to main content

Feel Good Friday – Harmless Harvest

Coconut water has been making big waves in America lately and we are all about it. The taste is great and the antioxidants are awesome for a hangover! But there is a sad trombone to this story too. Many countries are over sourcing their coconut trees and depleting the land, not to mention the many farmers who aren’t getting compensated properly for their product. That is why we are excited about Harmless Harvest which has been meticulous about setting up its business to benefit fair trade, the environment and our health. They are the first American coconut water to be Fair for Life– Social and Fair Trade certified.

Two French friends, Justin Guilbert and Douglas Riboud who met 15 years ago, launched the brand. Throughout business school they daydreamed about how they could change the world. After five years in the corporate grind they decided to quit and pursue their dream. Harmless Harvest was launched in 2009 out in San Francisco but they didn’t produce the first bottle until 2011. That is dedication.

Recommended Videos

We spoke to Justin to hear more about the process.

Image used with permission by copyright holder

We are reading on your site all about the process but not about the taste.

Basically if your source is getting the best treatment, most likely you will have the best product. That is what we are doing.

You don’t advertise?

Without any advertising or promotions we are the best brand in Whole Foods! It has all been about the quality of the product for us.

Tell us more.

If you look at hierarchy in our consumer world, products serve the brand. There is a whole lifestyle ‘proposal’ and it creates a desire and the product gets them closer to that lifestyle. It is kind of a perverse notion. This came about in the 60s when marketing came before the actual product.

So tell us more about your actual product: 

The Nam Hom coconut grows in a specific area of Thailand and the water has a very sweet, nutty taste. Needless to say we don’t want to tamper with this taste so we developed this high-pressure process to increase shelf life. But ours is perishable where others are not. And who wants to put something in their body that can sit on a shelf for years at a time?

We are putting the plant back as the focus, opposed to the branding. Coconut trees have been planted extensively since they are cash crops and have sometimes resulted in deforestation. With coconuts however there is already a large market for their water, meat and even fuel in Asia. For any food, we should work with what is naturally preexisting right? We work with coconut farmers who have been in business for some time and with the fair trade practices in use, we know they are getting paid what they deserve.

Your business plan is pretty cool.

We had to build our factory from scratch near the farms in Thailand so we could bottle from the source. Very few companies can actually start like that. Our whole idea was to have the entire system in place before we sold the first bottle. Whole Foods has been working with us since the early days and gave us the freedom to take our time and fine tune our product. We started out as two guys and now we have a company of over 200.

The company has set up a subsidiary in Thailand to ensure excellent working conditions at the factory. We’re working on creating funds for health and education-related improvements in Thailand.

How did you decide to partner with Fair for Life?

That decision was not a quick one. Committing to a long-term partnership with a fair trade certifier is pivotal to verifying our ecosystem-based business model. From the beginning, Harmless Harvest looked to companies respected for their environmental and social mindfulness, such as Whole Foods Market, and that led to a partnership with Fair for Life to develop a full-scale social and environmental program.

Tell us about your newest products:

Just in time for the holidays the brand has rolled out Dark Cacao and Cinnamon and Clove waters. Using Trinitario Cacao beans sourced from a fair trade farm in the Dominican Republic, these beans boast the highest concentration of flavonoids in any known food. There are also plenty of antioxidants and polyphenols in the mix to keep you going through the holiday party season.

As for the Cinnamon & Clove, we have sourced organic Korintje Cinnamon and Clove from their native Maluku Islands in Indonesia. Known for their warming and soothing properties.

Cator Sparks
Former Former Digital Trends Contributor, The Manual
Cator Sparks was the Editor-in-Chief of The Manual from its launch in 2012 until 2018. Previously, Cator was covering…
Netflix’s new documentary series now has a 100% critics’ rating on Rotten Tomatoes
The miniseries is just three hours long.
Osama bin Ladin in American Manhunt

Netflix puts out tons of new content every week, and while some of it is critically beloved, other things get panned or don't get much critical attention at all. One of the streamer's new shows this May, though, has debuted with a perfect score on Rotten Tomatoes.

American Manhunt: Osama bin Ladin is a documentary series that tells the story of the hunt for Osama bin Ladin the aftermath of the 9/11 terrorist attack. Although he was known in the years before 9/11, bin Ladin became U.S. intelligence's top target in the aftermath of the attacks, and it took nearly 10 years to track him down.

Read more
Austin Butler and Jeremy Allen White are set to face off in A24’s Enemies
The movie follows a detective and contract killer who play a game of cat and mouse.
Austin Butler in Masters of the Air.

A24 definitely knows how that one surefire way to drum up interest in its movies is to cast actors who are red hot in the industry. Now, reports suggests that the studio has done just that with Enemies, which will star Jeremy Allen White and Austin Butler as, you guessed it, enemies.

The film is described as a crime saga and comes from director Henry Dunham. The film's official synopsis says that it follows “a relentless detective and an infamous contract killer" who "collide in a deadly game of cat and mouse.” Production on the project is slated to begin this summer in Chicago.

Read more
Nobody 2: Everything we know so far
Bob Odenkirk is back for another action adventure
Bob Odenkirk in Nobody 2

Before Bob Odenkirk turned in a seminal performance of TV's prestige era playing Jimmy McGill and Saul Goodman in Breaking Bad and Better Call Saul, he was most known for his comedy chops. People were surprised to see him step out of his comfort zone in the world of drama television, but it helped usher in a new reputation for the veteran, everyman star.

Odenkirk got to play an action hero in 2021's Nobody, and the sequel is finally on the way. Nobody 2 might just be one of the best movies of the summer. Here is everything we know about it so far, from the cast to the trailer and the release date.
Is there a trailer for Nobody 2?
Nobody 2 | Official Trailer

Read more