Building a traditional superfood for the modern world
A lot of magic goes into each batch of HANAH ONE.
The entire superfood is produced from wild-harvested herbs, wild Keralan honey, and Ayurvedic ghee. Not a single ingredient comes pre-processed, or even packaged. The herbs themselves grow at different times of the year, in various climates, and require hand-harvesting to preserve both the herbs and their ecosystem.
Even the recipe and the philosophy behind HANAH ONE is the result of a years-long process of learning and experimentation. And, none of it could have happened without the generous contributions of several incredible people, and some mad coordinating.
The first step was my introduction to Ayurvedic physician Dr. V.A. Venugopal in 2012, while I was recovering from an injury after a cycling accident. I spent three years building a relationship with him and working on recipes. The transfer of knowledge and the amount of cultural translation needed was heavy.
Once we had the recipe down, we realized it was necessary to source ingredients from all over India, and during all times of the year, including monsoon season. Our demand for only the highest quality herbs meant finding the most traditional harvesting. This took a lifetime of experience from Dr. Venugopal, and a whole lot of coordination from HANAH and our team in Kerala.
In addition to finding the herbs, we had to figure out how to sustain the entire process, and assure our ability to grow so that we could share HANAH ONE with people around the world. We’ve been fortunate to team up with Stephen Badger, who spent years building Seeds of Change, an organic seed and food company that is devoted to bringing the concept of mutuality to life.
Mutuality aims to consciously create a business model whereby every person in the product chain benefits.
We strive to support local businesses in India, and a portion of every subscription goes to supporting the revival of ancient medicine and traditions throughout the world.
On our last trip to India in January of 2016, we were joined by one of our advisors, who works in the world of bovine genetics. After identifying a breed of cattle called Vechur, HANAH has brought in a few experts to help make sure that the breed does not go extinct. After meetings with all the relevant doctors and professors in this field, HANAH was able to purchase a rare Vechur cow and is currently looking after it on the grounds of Dr. Venugopal’s Ayurvedic hospital. We are also buying the ghee from these small cows at a higher than market price to help ensure that the locals don’t breed out the tiny vechur. Mutuality in action.
From the Ayurvedic knowledge to harvesting the herbs, it is no easy task to make a hand-crafted, wild-harvested product in India. But at HANAH, we have a devoted team that’s able to take action and be the type of change that we want to see in the world. And more importantly, we're doing so while having a whole lot of fun and maybe bringing a little bit of magic to the process.
DISCLAIMER
Statements throughout this publication have not been evaluated by the FDA. These products are not intended to diagnose, treat, cure or prevent any disease process.
Leave a comment
This site is protected by hCaptcha and the hCaptcha Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.