When you mention the name REBBL to most people, the first thing that usually pops up is their favorite flavor of the company’s adaptogenic coconut elixirs.
After all, these drinks are incredibly delicious and nutritious. And addictive.
Yet, when you dig deeper and peel back the layers of this brand, a very inspirational story emerges.
In REBBL With A Cause, an excellent documentary about the company’s origin and mission, we also learn how it is using Brazil nuts sourced from Peru to improve the well-being of indigenous people in that region and also to fight against human slavery and trafficking around the world — a $150 billion annual business, with 80% of the victims women and children.
Even though I profiled REBBL’s use of Brazil nuts in a story that I did last year, the information that I gathered to write this piece was all second-hand.
I did not meet the farmers, I could not see the Brazil nut trees in the rainforest, I was unable to truly understand the struggles that these people face and how they were being taken advantage of by local traders.
Additionally, I could not fully grasp the sensitivity to which REBBL was approaching this project in Peru.
While I was aware that the individuals who run and work at REBBL are deeply caring, seeing them interact with the indigenous people in Peru and observing them take the long-term approach of building true relationships — partnerships — came through vividly in this film. So did the enormous impact that REBBL has had in this community and throughout the world, where the company has helped more than 20,000 people escape human trafficking.
Along with giving me a much greater appreciation for the incredible work that REBBL is doing in Peru, the documentary also forced me to think about some larger issues in society and in my own life.
This was because the principle of regenerative business — using a business to improve every person or thing that it comes into contact with — was an important theme in the film and is a guiding force in how REBBL operates and makes decisions on a daily basis.
As a result, the following questions came up for me.
Shouldn’t we be expecting more from the companies that we support and whose products we buy? Shouldn’t they all be in the pursuit of operating as a regenerative business?
And how can I, as an individual, be more regenerative in my own life? How can I become more conscious and positively impact every person and thing that I interact with?
REBBL With A Cause is more than just a documentary about the good that an organic beverage company is doing in the world.
It is also a film that inspires us to be better.
And to ask what is possible.
To watch REBBL With A Cause, it can be viewed here.
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