The next time you see a bottle of coconut water on the shelf, ask yourself where it came from. The drink, which has seen a boom since it was first commercially bottled in 2004, is now a booming industry. Not all coconut waters are all natural or fair trade, but Harmless Harvest is looking to change that.
"Rather than using heat to pasteurize the water—the typical process, which Harmless Harvest claims destroys some of the value of the drink—the company uses a high-pressure treatment instead. (That's the same process that feeds the cold-pressed juice craze). Their main product is served raw, with nothing added.
The company has also gone through an exhaustive process to become Fair Trade certified by Fair for Life, meaning all of its working conditions—from suppliers to their factory in Thailand, to their offices in San Francisco—have been carefully vetted."
Co-founders Douglas Riboud and Justin Guilbert are trying to shift the industry towards a more natural product. Their methods are involved, but the company has seen results, growing to around 300 employees since 2010. Get the full scoop on Harmless Harvest and coconut water from Adele Peters over on Co.exist.
