The Norwalk Hour article on April 2, 2009 by Chris Bosak
Posts Tagged ‘Mike’
Yumnuts Takes Root in Norwalk - Norwalk Hour 4-2-09
Sunday, May 24th, 2009
Yumnuts Launches at Expo West
Saturday, May 2nd, 2009
The Yumnuts team of Tyler, Jerome and Mike headed west the first week in March for the official launch of Yumnuts at Expo West in Anaheim, California. Yumnuts spent the week leading up to Expo on the packaging line ensuring that the first production run went smoothly. The product and packaging came out great and was a huge hit at the show.
The crew handed out over 2,500 samples of Yumnuts products. There was a very good, positive buzz about the product at the show. We had a number of people come to our booth because someone else had told them that they needed to try our chocolate cashews. We even had the comment, “You all have the hottest nuts at the show”, a reference to our chili lime flavor.
The show was also a great opportunity for Jerome and Tyler to connect with many of their former colleagues from Bear Naked. Many of the Bear Naked alumni are still active in the natural food industry and were in attendance at Expo. It was great to catch up with old friends and hear about their new endeavors.
The show was a success and has lead to Yumnuts working with several distributors and customers.
Yumnuts Visits India
Saturday, May 2nd, 2009
In late January, Mike and Tyler had the chance to visit Southern India to get an up-close view of the cashew industry. It was a fascinating trip that took us to a cashew farm, a processing facility and a roaster. At the cashew farm we were introduced to all of the different stages of cashew growth and development. We learned about the cashew apple and even tasted the fruit right off the tree. It was bitter and very acidic. Let’s just say I am not sure I would be having one of these apples every day.
At the processing facility we learned how they take the raw cashew seeds (still in the shell) and steam, crack, heat, peel and sort them. All of this to yield what we know as a raw cashew.
We met some of the best people in the cashew industry. Our gracious hosts took very good care of us on our trip. It was a pleasure to spend time with them and to learn more about their industry and their families.
Mike and Tyler had the opportunity to take a backwater tour on the interior waterway. Mike tried his hand at making rope and we saw dozens of different birds, a prawn farm and many different local fruits, vegetables and spices. It was a very relaxing trip and our tour guide was an absolute comedian. He climbed a 40 foot coconut tree in about 5 seconds flat and told great stories. The highlight of the trip may have been when Mike and Tyler both tried to lean back in the boat to go under a low bridge (imagine a sitting limbo). They both fell off their seats and onto their backs on the floor of the boat. As they fell, they both cracked their heads on the wood seat behind them. While it was painful, it induced a good, hard 5 minute laughing spell for everyone. Mike had a welt on the back of his neck for a good solid week.
Our last night we had the treat of staying on the Arabian Sea and witnessed a spectacular sunset. All around it was a fantastic trip and one of life’s truly great experiences.
