The Shocking Truth About Produce Waste In America & Fixing The Broken Food Supply Chain Ft. Melissa Ackerman of Planet Harvest

The following podcast is a deer media production.

She's a lifestyle blogger extraordinaire.

Fantastic.

And he's a serial entrepreneur.

A very smart company.

And now Lauren Evertson, Michael Bostick,

are bringing you along for the ride.

Get ready for some major realness.

Welcome to the skinny confidential, him and her.

Melissa Akerman is the founder and CEO of Planet Harvest,

a profit-for-purchase company redefining how the country

sources, distributes, and consumes fresh produce.

So on this episode, we learned all about Whole Harvest,

a model that delivers scalable, sustainable solutions

to reduce food waste, support the farmers,

and increase access to nourishing produce.

I found this episode fascinating.

With that, let's welcome Melissa of Planet Harvest to the show.

This is the skinny confidential, him and her.

Melissa, what would shock everyone about the produce in America?

I think a lot of people don't even know where their produce comes from.

They don't realize that it's not from a local farmer

or from somebody that's really close to them.

It's grown 60% of our lettuce is grown in California

about an hour from San Francisco.

And I think the second thing that would shock them

is also how much produce is left in the fields.

30% of produce is grown and left in the fields,

because it's not the right size for the grocery store

or the food service industry.

To just give you a number, that's 400 million pounds of strawberries

that are left in the fields every year in the USA,

because they're just not the right size,

not because they don't taste good.

So when there's food shortages in certain areas

and you have all this produce left over,

why are we not connecting those two things?

So that's like really what started this whole thing for me.

I was on the floor during the pandemic,

trying to figure out what I'm doing in my bathroom,

writing a mom's group, and somebody outraged me

just because they said, I don't understand.

There's all this access.

There's pictures of, you know, milk being spilled into the river

as an onions being torn under.

Why can't we take that and bring it to the food banks?

And the answer is the supply chain.

It's how does it get out of the fields

and moved to places that need access?

And because that supply chain just doesn't exist

in a way that is coherent and needs to be rebuilt,

it just can't move that easily from what is left

to being able to get to the people that need it most.

And this may be a ignorant comment,

but I'm assuming when you say it's not the right size

for the grocery chains, is that the buyers looking

and saying this doesn't look right

and we know the consumer won't buy it

because they're looking for something

that looks bigger or more robust or whatever.

And so they just, they don't purchase it

because they can't move it.

Is that what the reason is?

Yeah, it goes a little deeper.

So the farmers actually don't even pick it.

So when they're picking strawberries,

they are having the, the pickers in the field

and they're picking and they're deciding

and they know if it's going to fit

because they have the exact sizes

that the grocery store wants.

It has to fit a certain amount of strawberries

in one pound of, of a pack.

And so they won't pick it.

They'll either pick it and they throw it right down

into the ground or on some products,

they literally leave it on the tree like a cherry

because it's just not the right size.

So if it's a little big or a little small,

it has no way of leaving the field

to be a part of the fresh market.

Why do you think that, I mean, I do this.

I don't know if everyone does this

that people romanticize that our crops are grown by farmers

and it's this whimsical magical.

If you could see what's in my head, it's so romantic

and it sounds like it's nothing like that.

Why do we have that perception?

Well, I love that you have that perception

because one of the biggest things

I hear from farmers all the time

is that they don't feel like appreciated

or that people really value what they do

to bring food into this world.

And so I love that that's what you think

and that's part of what we want to do

is tell the stories of the farmers,

tell the stories of the generations

that are bringing in this product.

It's hard for farmers to even get the next generation

to want to be a part of it.

So I think people think about small farmers like one acre

but the farmers that are really making a lot of this,

they can be one to five acres of farmers

but they're also people that have 300 acres to 3,000 acres

and they're growing this in it's backed by private equity

and it's backed by venture capital

and it's a business, it's a commodity business

that's growing this product.

And so it's, I don't know that people have been there

if you have been on a farm that's a large scale farm,

you'll see these crews that come in and the labor

and all that but it's a big business

and it travels depending on the time of year

down the coast of California to Arizona

and from Florida up the East Coast

and then in the summer you're getting a lot of stuff grown

throughout the country for your more local tomatoes

and squashes and stuff of that nature.

When you, yourself knowing everything that you know

about produce, go grocery shopping.

What is your mentality?

How do you grocery shop?

I grocery shop, one of my favorite things to do

and I love teaching my kids about this too

is like bananas for example, I'll buy stages of bananas

so I'll buy like three or four or one,

we eat a lot of bananas in my house,

one that's like green, one that's a little yellow

and then one that's like almost turning

and so those are called stages of bananas.

I try to buy produce for when I'm gonna eat it

so that I don't over buy for my own home.

That's where I think a lot of people think about excess

or extra is like what you buy in your home

but I mean for me where the blue ocean opportunity

is what's on the farms and how we can change

the consumers idea of buying this product

that might not look perfect

or they're not exactly the same sizes

kind of more like the European markets

where you'll go in and you see that

there are a little bit of different sizes

and that would be such a big change

if the consumers pushed for products

that were taste delicious, look delicious

but maybe weren't uniform in size.

Am I weird to think that I want a charlie brown

like apple and a charlie brown tree like strawberry?

I don't want the perfect one

because the perfect one looks like it was genetically modified.

Like when I get this huge blueberry

that's bigger than my hand, I don't want that.

I want the one that's kind of a charlie brown tree.

I think you're unique.

I think there are, no people don't want that.

I think people want if they're looking at their strawberries

they're looking for those big ones

that are perfectly red and look like sweet.

They're not looking for the ones that are smaller

and bigger and all different mixed sizes within the pack.

I think if they look at that they'd be like

this is super ununiformed and what happened here

and they would ask more of those kind of questions.

Is this as big of a problem in Europe?

You just, you mentioned Europe

or is there as much waste over there

and do they use more of the vegetables and produce there?

It's a global problem for sure

but every country has their own unique

and like we're working on a tool

the world wildlife fund global loss tool

and that's able to measure throughout the world.

But for us, one of the biggest core tenants

that we're trying to, in fact, is like

how do we bring more products back to the US?

So for example, peaches.

A lot of peaches that are brought in that are canned and frozen

are brought in from Spain and Greece.

And so the peach growers in the US

are like looking for the US market

to try to support them more

so that they don't have to throw away.

I spoke to a peach grower the other day.

It's 20% of his fields are being thrown away

because the demand is not there for the US peaches

and they're being, it's being brought in from Spain and from Greece.

If you could like raise a wand

and just say I want everything to be like this tomorrow

with the produce industry, what would be your goals for that?

A perfect world would be a little bit more like Australia.

They have this thing called the odd bunch

that's in the grocery stores

where they have a section of the grocery store

that has a table that allows for based on what's happening

because this is all product that's growing from the time

and picked and it's changing constantly

within the marketplace that could house on this table

what's available in excess at that moment.

If there's a big surge in potatoes

that are being grown or apples or strawberries,

how can we bring that so that the American consumer,

just like if they want organic,

or just like if they want fair trade,

would come in and go to those tables first,

see what's available, what's excess,

see what's delicious and tasted and have all the sampling

and start buying with increasing the price access for people

but that would be available there

and they could decide that week, okay,

I'm gonna use squash because it's in excess

in my dinner this week or I'm gonna use a zucchini

because it's on that excess table.

And so I want a world in which this excess produce

just becomes part of the tradition of the American buyer

that they don't think about it as much as like

what is conventional and what had the specs

that have been out there already.

So we got introduced through Ivanka Trump,

of all people who we really admire

and we were hanging out down in Miami

and she said, hey, you gotta talk

because she's a co-founder and I wonder

how did you guys even get into business in the first place

and what were you doing before?

Sure, so I ran one of the largest produce management

and produce transportation companies.

What does that mean?

We bought the produce that went to large restaurants

like Panera, Starbucks, Jamba Juice, Buffalo Wild Wings,

different Wings companies and hospitals and schools.

And in that time, right before the pandemic,

we had just tried to decide, okay, where is our path going?

The pandemic hit and overnight our customers

all shut their doors.

And I had one note next to me was save the supply chain

because it was family businesses,

these distributors across the countries and farmers

that were growing specifically for restaurants

and they had nowhere to bring their products.

So as I mentioned, it was the first time

that I think a lot of Americans were exposed

to access in the supply chain.

They saw the milk being dumped

and the carrots being put back into the ground

and they were like, why, where do we go with this?

So there was a program that Ivanka actually championed

and led for the government

called the Farmers to Family Food Box Program,

the USDA's program.

That program was a $6 billion program

that was part of the Trump administration

then carried over into the Biden administration

and sunsetted when the COVID funds ended.

And I held one of the larger contracts

and we made these boxes and in these boxes

there was produce, there was protein, there was dairy,

there was cheese and we connected the farmers,

the businesses to 501C charity organizations.

So my company in four months moved 9.2 million boxes

and we did these big events where we handed them out

and so Ivanka would come to those events

because she was leading in and overseeing it.

And I got the opportunity to meet with her

and talk to her and we bonded over the idea that like,

yes, there's all this access and there's all this need

but this is not just a pandemic program.

This is a program that really a problem that exists

throughout the ages that we've, you know, the modern ages.

And so she really, I think, fell in love with the farmers

and the stories and the availability

to really make massive change and that's where we met

and we started this idea of how do we turn this either

into a nonprofit or to a business

and we decided to turn it into an impact business.

She's a very curious person and I think, you know,

we had her on the show and what I personally think

about her as it relates to when she was in the administration

is I don't think she gets enough credit

for a lot of the things like this that she was doing.

There's, you know, there's all the big media headlines

and the political biases that people have but as it relates

to her there was a lot of things that I think were like

straight down the line and just beneficial for the country

and people in general that I just don't,

there's enough awareness around her with that stuff.

Right?

She didn't, she doesn't get as much accolade

as I think she should for that kind of stuff.

100% I mean, this program you could ask distributors,

produce distributors so just because I don't know

that everyone knows what that means.

It's like a large Costco warehouse if you've been there

where there's just all different types of fruits

and vegetables and sometimes dairy

and they get, you don't bring a whole truckload of produce

from California to the back of a jama juice.

You have to have a distributor that's able to pick

a box of this and a box of that and then make an order

to send it over to the back of a restaurant.

These distributors companies were saved

because of this farmer's to family food box program.

They had nowhere to be able to do the business

and I mean, I've had companies literally to this day

think that program for saving them.

And that was, they had nowhere, the restaurants were closed.

I mean, they were closed for, as you all remember,

for so long.

I mean, some restaurants did really well

like the quick service restaurants,

but the big white tablecloth and the big mop,

like the bigger restaurants weren't in business,

schools weren't in business,

airports weren't in business.

And so these growers that grow for that,

along with the distributors that service them,

along with the trucking companies that service them,

they had nowhere to do their business.

And so this program by the USDA

that Ivanka really shepherd and brought forward

was life saving to them.

I also think people don't realize

what amazing business woman she is.

Are there some tips that she has shared with you

that you've learned throughout working with her?

Yeah, she's quite frankly amazing.

So I ran this business and it had hundreds of employees,

a huge P&L departments.

When you start as an entrepreneur

and you start at the beginning, it's a different game.

So her advice and her ability to help me stay focused

and really keep on the topics that we were trying to do

were amazing.

And top of the fact that I just think her vision

and her visionary sense to think so much bigger

and to be able to help is just something that people

maybe know about her, but I can speak from

how she built this business with me

that she thinks about things.

I might think about hitting 10 cities

and she's thinking about hitting 200 cities within a year.

She just wants something that scales.

I think the other thing that like sits with me the most

is that when we talk about our monthly meetings

and anyone that runs a business knows you look

at your forecasting, you look at your budgeting,

that's important to her.

But what's most important to her is who are we impacting?

How many farmers are we impacting?

How many pounds are we bringing into the system?

And how many people are we putting fresh fruits and vegetables?

And those impact numbers are what drive her to me

like there's no better partner and co-founder

that makes you think big, dream big, and then act big.

I think those are big deals.

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What is the risk to the public and the population

if these supply chains and farms start to fail over time?

I think like, again, you're talking about people not

being aware of where their food comes from.

And I think we take for granted that we can just walk

into a store and there's this abundance of things

on our shelves and other countries in places

in the world is not always like that.

What are some of the things that maybe the public's

just unaware of when it comes to the dangers

of having these things disrupted?

I think the disruption is, I mean,

how much is an America?

Like I think that that's part of it.

Like we talk about local, but local can be, you know,

100 miles to 250 miles if you think about

how big a state is and stuff like that.

So I think it's how much is coming in from other countries.

And again, this is a global issue.

And if we're trying to do things with greenhouse gases

and water emissions, like we need this on a global scale,

but for us, it's like helping the American farmer first.

So I think that's the first thing.

The second thing is with the supply,

I mean, we all could agree that food is medicine

and food should be what is helping cure a lot of these issues.

So like we want to have as many options as possible.

If we have certain farmers that can't produce that food,

then you're not going to have those food,

those products in the supply chain to be able to eat

and to be able to use as what you are helping your body,

your children, those flavors, all of those things.

So I think if we can use all of it,

it just gives more access to people

and it gives more options to people.

And it keeps things close to home,

which I think is super important.

And why are they at risk of potentially not being able

to produce anymore?

You mentioned earlier, maybe the generations following

these farmers aren't going into farming as often,

or supply chain issues or waste.

Like what would be the reasons they could stop producing?

If they can't afford it.

I mean, if they can't afford to pick the products.

Like so that's another really big reason why it's not picked.

It's like, if it costs more for them to pick it,

pack it and ship it, then it would to leave it on the ground.

That's what they're going to do.

And they don't want to.

They've already put in the water.

They've already put in the labor.

They've already put in all of those things.

But ultimately, if it doesn't make sense financially,

they are businesses after all.

Would you buy every single thing on the shelf?

Is there anything that you're never touching

with a 10-foot pole, a fresh produce?

Yes, I'm buying it all.

You're buying it all?

Yeah.

If you're like, oh, this one is really nasty.

There's nothing.

There's nothing.

I mean, I love fresh fruits and vegetables.

I think that they are delicious.

I'm trying to think if there's one that I would stay away

from because of my own preferences.

I love trying different things, new things,

the introductions of things.

Yeah, I love all of the different fruits and vegetables.

Do you know why they have those little numbers

on the stickers on the produce?

Yeah, so the PLUs.

Yeah.

So that helps to track and trace where it's from.

So you can find out where it was shipped from.

So the biggest thing for a fresh produce industry

is to be able to find where the place before it came,

so that you're able to figure out exactly what products

and where what farm it came from.

If there's ever an issue that they need

to be able to pull something from the shelf.

You are a mom of three boys.

Yeah.

How are you balancing everything you're doing?

You have all these amazing headlines with Ivanka.

You guys are everywhere.

How are you balancing that with three boys?

An amazing team at home.

And the organization, I think, is super important.

For me and my family on Sunday nights,

we have a meeting.

We use an old time word document with chat

with a different chart with every person's name,

what we're going to eat for the week,

any task that have to be done, even for the pets.

And we organize and we divide and conquer.

My husband's an orthopedic surgeon.

So he's busy too.

And he's out there fixing knees and hips.

But I think ultimately, I love when my kids are asked,

what is it that your mom does?

And she says she fights to help farmers

and bring food to your table.

And they're with me.

They're with me when we do these events and hand out boxes

to fresh fruits and vegetables to people.

They're there packing them.

They're there going to the farms and seeing where it's all built.

So it's being present at the moment where you are.

It's about, you can't be in two places at once,

so I don't pretend to be in for a hard one.

And putting my head 100% into what I'm doing

and trusting that what I've built at home

with preparation and a good team can help there.

How do you think about leadership?

Bringing people around me that I think

could be the next step in the leadership process.

I have an incredible team right now of all women.

And it's been amazing.

Actually, I have a few men,

but not on the day-to-day stuff that I'm working on.

And it's just incredible to bring passionate people

that are skilled in their area

and letting them and trusting them

to be able to accomplish what they can accomplish.

If you could tell our audience one thing

and you could have them take away one thing

from this episode about produce, what would it be?

Eat produce, love produce, ask for produce,

and stop only eating with your eyes.

Think about when you see something that might be

a little bigger, small.

Think about where it came from

and the route it took to get there.

So don't be so superficial when it comes to produce.

Totally.

You know, don't be so vapid about it.

I mean, think about it like, you know,

dovcommercial, you know?

It's like, all bodies are beautiful.

All produce is beautiful.

How can we support farmers by asking

that we get more of that harvest,

that full harvest approach, that whole harvest

so that we can help the farmers

and we can enjoy nutrient-dense, delicious food?

What is the response from the farmers now with you now

that you guys have gotten this project underway?

It's amazing.

Like the phone calls and the meetings that we can have

where people believe in it,

where we get to hear their stories,

where they bring in their trade associations

and all the different people from big to small size farmers

and they're like, you really think you can do this?

I mean, we had the CEO of Chabani in the fields with us.

That's one of our partners in our projects.

And he, I mean, he was stepping over the rows,

his hands were in the strawberries.

He was holding his like, this is gonna be discarded.

This is gonna be discarded.

How is that possible?

This is beautiful.

So I think seeing it firsthand and having,

and you know, he's calling for others

to join us in this, in this change of trying to ask

for all of the produce, asking for excess

and bringing back American buying.

So when I get to see people like that

that I find incredible leaders, incredible CEOs

that have visions, it's just, it's exciting

that I think we're on the right track.

And it's something that I think the consumers

once they learn more about it.

It's in that bucket of sustainability.

It's in that bucket of healthy eating.

It's a win all across the board.

So if you guys are able to kind of get rid of the waste,

what are you then going to do with that excess?

Are you, is it for charities?

Is it to feed people?

Is it to put in shell?

Like what happens to your, yeah, where's it go?

So for example, the bottom of the fruit,

what you have on the Chabani yogurt,

like that's the project that we're working on.

We work, we create these food boxes,

which ultimately are either going for impact work

into communities that need it

or in food as medicine boxes.

So there's a movement to be able to use food

as a way to treat, like diabetes, hypertension,

high-risk pregnancies.

We create these boxes that can include the fresh,

the excess produce.

They have, in them, we partner with Thrive Ariana Huffington's

company so that we have that data, the data,

the science behind it to say what kind of recipes,

what kind of product should be in it

for each of these different ailments.

And then we have the products delivered directly

to patient stores.

And then the doctors look back at it

and see what are the numbers and the things

that are changing from having access

to fresh fruits and vegetables.

So I think there's a big movement out there

to eat healthier, and it's how do we get the products

to food insecure areas that don't have access

to fresh fruits and vegetables.

I think like the average American,

if I was listening or watching this show,

we see headlines all the time about people struggling

to put food on the table, if the economy's down

or whatever, in other places in the world,

people not having access to certain food.

And then now you're hearing there's a ton of food here

that is just sitting and being wasted

while at the same time.

And again, I'm an entrepreneur, so I start to think,

well, there's all these programs that are setting people

up to go and buy maybe things that are not nutritious

and not healthy, but we have all this great nutrition

that comes from the earth sitting over here.

So like, why is that not?

So there are some government programs like Section 32,

which will buy if there's a huge amount of extras.

But again, the specs that are there are usually

and I could be wrong on this US number one grade.

So again, it's like, how do we change the grading system

to allow for more of this product to get into schools,

to get into, and I think that ultimately,

that's something that hopefully will happen over time,

but nothing that we're working on directly

with the government.

Yeah, I mean, we'll go, sometimes Lauren and I

will go to our kids' school for lunch.

We pack our lunch mostly because some of the foods

that they're serving in these schools,

like it's not the most nutritious meals.

And I start to hear this, I'm like,

why is some of this food and vegetables and produce

not in the food?

You know what I mean?

It's exactly.

It's just, I think it's kind of like,

it's probably much more difficult than I'm describing it.

And that's the world that you're in.

But from what I hear, it's like common sense.

Like, well, we have this food and supply chain.

Like, why is that not here providing nutrition?

The grading has to change.

The specs have to change.

And the allowance and tolerance has to change.

And then I mean, it's innovation.

Like, we're working with an incredible lettuce grower right now

that makes those bag pack lattices that you buy.

And we're thinking about new ways to use broccoli leaves.

Like, you take the broccoli off the stock

but then you leave all the leaves in the field.

How can we use that as like, you know,

with the right dressings, it would be like a kale

a little bitter but really nutrient dense?

How do we continue to expand

on what pushed the boundaries of what's popular

within the diets of the American people?

In researching for this podcast, we text Ivanka

and she wrote back a very, very thoughtful response.

And so I was gonna hit some of the points

and see how you felt about what she said.

Something that she brought up was, and I want to know,

how come no one has found a solution for this?

Why is this the first moment that this is happening?

I think that there was so much momentum

on just getting the right product to the shelf

and getting people to purchase

that there was no one that was really connecting the dots.

I think we sit in a really, really like you said,

an amazing place where Ivanka knows so many people

and I have a long history in the produce industry

to be able to talk about this and bring this together.

Feeding America, for example, does do a little bit of this,

which is the largest, you know, food banking network.

So they do something where they guy from growers

that have access, but even with what they're doing,

there's so much more out there

and so much opportunity to be able to do more.

Give us a detailed impact of what this has done

to the livelihood of the farmers.

You mentioned earlier, there was a lot of emotion

in the fields, give us some examples of that.

Yeah, so again, we met in the fields of Ivanka, myself,

and Hamdi met with these strawberry growers

that had three generations with them standing in the fields

and just talked about like, we kept asking why?

Why do you leave this here, help us understand?

And it all came down to they are not paid enough money

to make sure that it comes out,

that they need to make 10 cents more, 5 cents more,

whatever it is to make sure that it can come out

of the fields.

And when we talked about what we're thinking about,

we talked about long-term contracts.

We talked about the idea that we would be able

to put a three-year contract in place

that we would guarantee the purchasing

of this product and hopefully their whole harvest,

their number one product too.

They were just like tears.

Like tears in their eyes, they talked about how amazing it was

and how they've never had anybody.

That was the other big thing.

Nobody asked them, nobody asked them, nobody asked them why,

and this goes back to the respect

and like the goodness that we want from our farmers.

They don't ask them for their stories

and how they get there.

There's so much pain, sweat, tears, and unbelievable labor

from our American farmers.

And I think they feel respected having her out in the fields,

having homed out in the field and asking why

goes along with that storytelling

of this beautiful product that should get,

make its way out of those farm gates.

Tell us about the World Wildlife Fund.

So as I mentioned, the World Wildlife Fund

we're working with one of their tools

to be able to measure the product

that's left in the field.

How much extra product is there?

If you're able to actually measure exact.

Exactly.

And then figure out what we can do to target with it.

We worked on a pilot program with them already

where we took strawberries.

Right now in the US market, there's only a number one strawberry.

So there's no number two fresh strawberry that people sell.

So we worked with different organizations

like Stanford's Cafe, Google's Cafe,

different places in California where the chefs were able

to taste and try these products that wouldn't have made it

to the number one market, but could make it to the number two.

And they were trying to figure out interesting ways

to use it for fruit salad, smooth these desserts, cut it,

chop it, do different things with it, and keep it fresh.

We can pair farmers the most when we keep the products fresh.

So we were trying to figure that out.

So through that partnership and through working

with different distributors and different food service

companies, we were able to test this and the chefs loved it.

So now it's a matter of how do you make it mainstream

and how do you push it so that you can use more of the non-perfect

stuff within cafeterias and different restaurants

throughout the country?

What is one of the main reasons that these farmers are starting

to not be able to afford to either ship or pick

or produce these products or these?

It's all the different input costs of water.

You can even imagine labor.

It's the competition again from other countries

where they either have subsidies from their government

to be able to move the product.

It's less money for labor in those countries

and it's less for all different inputs.

So it's the competition internationally.

It's the sheer amount of volume that's being grown.

I mean, you would think right now, and I believe

that with GLP ones and the entire movement,

people want healthier choices.

And I think we'll start seeing as a data comes out,

people are going to start eating more fresh fruits

and vegetables along with protein fiber, all those things.

So we just, as that movement continues to happen,

this I think that the fruits and vegetables

are going to see their day.

Let's quickly talk about experience

and specifically experience subscription

canceling service.

I love experience I've used it for over a decade now,

mostly for credit monitoring, making sure

that I can get my credit in the right place.

They have an incredible tool that basically provides you

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and make sure that you're maximizing the most of your credit.

Many people are familiar with experience

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but did you know they also have a subscription cancelation

service that is incredible.

I talk a lot on this podcast about how important it is

to save that extra dollar, reinvest,

make sure you're putting more money in your pocket,

make sure that you're not working and wasting

and spending all that money on things you don't need.

And what I love about experience platform

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And most importantly, make sure that your money's going

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Experience can take the pain out of canceling subscriptions

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Just keep the ones you want and put money back in your pocket.

This is a no-brainer.

Imagine you're sitting there at the end of every month

like many of us do going through your budget,

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wondering where you can save,

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and you realize that you have a bunch of unwanted

subscription service fees that are going out the door,

wasting your money, taking money directly out of your pocket

for things that you're not even using anymore.

With experience cancellation service,

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They have over 200 subscriptions

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They'll keep an eye out for new deals and savings opportunities

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Well, experience can make sure that you get that

and take advantage of that deal

so that even if you are using a service,

you're getting the best possible rate.

Again, there's nothing that drives me more crazy knowing

that I'm wasting money, that my loved ones are wasting money.

It's such a letdown when you see your hard earned dollars

go to places that aren't being used,

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And again, in a time when it's hard

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Imagine right now if you just put an extra $631 back

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That's how I like to think about this.

It's not only potentially helpful for you,

but for your loved ones and people that you care about.

Don't just take it from me, over $25 million

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So clearly there's a ton of people saving money

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Quick break to talk about free nicotine.

Some of you saw my social posts the other day on Instagram

where I was talking about free nicotine.

And to say I got a lot of questions about it

is an understatement.

So here's the thing, a lot of people have concerns,

questions, qualms around nicotine and nicotine use.

I've always personally been a fan of nicotine.

And yes, I know it can be addictive.

It's a chemical.

You definitely have to be careful with it.

But it also has so many potential benefits

that aren't talked about nearly enough,

which I think could potentially outweigh

some of the concerns that people have around

obviously nicotine being addictive.

There's other substances that we use

and we take for performance that are not looked at

in the same lens.

People have been using nicotine for generations.

I personally love it.

And I love that with free nicotine,

you don't have to smoke it.

What I also love about free nicotine,

it's really for somebody that's ready to lock in.

When you really need to focus, when you need to get stuff done,

that's how I use it.

And what I love about their brand

is that you can control the dosage.

So if you're new to nicotine and you're thinking

about experimenting with it,

you obviously don't want to go and take super high doses

if you're not used to it.

They have these three milligram pouches,

six milligram, nine milligram, 12 and 15.

So you can kind of like ease into it

and figure out what's right for you.

I take very little and then I take it only in moments

when I really want to lock in and focus.

Some people may not be aware of the potential benefits

when it comes to nicotine.

First, you can potentially increase your alertness

because nicotine stimulates acetylcholine

and dopamine signaling,

which can increase wakefulness and mental alertness.

That's how I like to use it.

It can also, like I said earlier,

improve attention and focus

because nicotine activates acetylcholine receptors in the body.

So again, when I need to do a podcast,

when I have a lot of work going on,

when I need to really lock in and focus,

this is the tool that I use in order to do so.

It's also been said that nicotine potentially helps

working memory and short-term memory recall

as well as also potentially being a neuroprotective agent.

It can potentially help guard against things

like Parkinson's disease and Alzheimer's disease.

Again, this does not mean nicotine prevents these diseases,

but there is the potential that you can protect

against these diseases.

There's also appetite, suppression, mood regulation,

enhanced reaction times, so many different things.

And like I said, I like nicotine as a tool to perform

to be on my best, to make sure that when I need to focus,

I'm focused when I need to be paying attention,

I'm paying attention.

And when I need that extra edge to perform, I get it.

I like the pouches, I like free nicotine

because it's predictable, it's easy.

And like I said, I can control the dosage.

The flavors that I've really been leaning into lately

are the watermelon flavor and the mint flavor.

I think those are the best,

but they also have a wide assortment of different ones.

I think the watermelon's a new flavor.

So if you've been seeing me post about free nicotine,

here's why, again, I'm always looking for the edge

and I'm always looking to perform

and free nicotine helps me do that.

And again, I know that you have to be careful

with nicotine, it's addictive, it's a chemical,

but it also could be potentially a great tool

for those that use it responsibly.

So if you've been thinking about experimenting

when nicotine check free nicotine out,

try free nicotine pouches today at freepouch.com

and use code skinny for 25% off for new customers only.

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Introducing the skinny confidential ice roller.

Reimagined.

Think a sleeker lines, a softer pink,

a custom buttery dust bag, and a silver roller,

not pink anymore, that is ice colds.

I wanted to do a jeige on the iconic ice roller.

I wanted to update it.

This ice roller for me has always been more than just a tool.

It's about helping us depuff and sculpt

and calm the skin in a way that feels intentional.

And I wanted the ice roller to feel evolved.

It's changed, you've changed.

So yes, the new gorgeous stunning beautiful ice roller

is still gonna do the same things.

It reduces puffiness and redness in your face.

I used it this morning before I put on my makeup.

It definitely helps with the under eye bags.

Of course, it helps boost circulation and radiance.

I just feel like it really helps stimulate blood flow

and gives me that tighter, more radiant skin.

And then it also is known to give you a smoother,

tighter looking skin.

So what I like to do is I like to combine facial massage

with cold therapy.

And this really helps give you a really nice foundation

before you even apply your skincare.

This ice roller for me is a full circle moment.

I think that a lot of you bought the ice roller,

you know, five, six years ago when we launched it.

And now I am launching something that feels

more in alignment with where you're at.

It's so beautiful, you guys.

Like it's just softer and more effortless in every way.

And I really put my own touches on every single little step

from the packaging to the colors,

to how it feels to even the roller.

It's all been elevated just for you.

So the ritual, the Lauren ritual,

is you do cold therapy to help fight inflammation.

You roll it, you glide it across your face.

I put it on my jawline, my neck, I roll it down.

Your skin is just going to appear a smoother and tighter

before you go in for the kill with the skincare

and the makeup.

Don't skip the cold therapy.

The new ice roller is an upgrade designed

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And I hope you guys love it as much as I do.

This is the beauty tool that started at all,

redesigned to evolve with you.

I'm showing it on YouTube too, if you're on YouTube,

if you're seeing me visually.

Get it way, it's hot at shopskonyconfidential.com.

That's shopskonyconfidential.com.

We're former California residents.

We live out here, grew up in California.

But when I hear 80% of the lettuce is grown in California.

And again, being an employer, understanding the cost

to do business over there now, I worry,

because like if 80% of the lettuce is concentrated there,

and it becomes too expensive for these farmers

to produce there, what happens,

then if it just becomes unsustainable to run that business.

But if I was running that lettuce business,

and all of a sudden I couldn't make money running it,

and 80% of the world supplies there,

is that of vulnerability that people need to be aware of

or think about?

Yeah, I mean, it's, you know,

if they, when they grow the lettuce, you know,

it's like around 60%, so 60% of the lettuce,

and it grows in Selena's California,

and then it moves to the desert,

and then it moves to Arizona.

And as things happen, and it gets pulled,

that it just won't be on the shelf,

I mean, they've tried hydroponics,

and building inside, and then having it

in their trying to find new microclimates to grow,

they'll do it a lot in Mexico as well,

but it's a vulnerability,

and it's something that like we continue to lobby

as an industry to make sure that these input costs stay

at a place where we can afford to grow in the US,

but ultimately, it's, that's,

it's called the Salable of the World.

I approach it from, I guess,

more of like an analytical P&L perspective,

and I just hear that amount of concentration

from that particular product,

and then the difficulty of being able to sustain

a business to produce that product,

and I just think, you know, it sounds nice,

like raise minimum wage and never pay everybody more,

but like if, if all of a sudden a massive supply chain

gets ripped off from one of those businesses,

start to go under because they don't have it,

it's all connected.

Yeah, I met, I met an expert on all of the different things,

but I mean, for sure, like,

if people are interested,

the International Fresh Produce Association

has like all of that information

about what the causes are and the different things

that the industry is looking to.

Then what again, what do I know?

I'm just a podcaster.

I know that you and Ivanka in your partnership

have also spent a lot of time volunteering in Miami

after the fires in Maui and California.

What did that look like for you?

Yeah, she's been incredible.

I mean, it's unbelievable that she's out there,

she's handling the boxes, we've packed boxes,

we've done all different things,

but part of what our businesses is emergency relief.

And so we have the ability to respond within two days

to be able to get boxes,

and we usually put in 10 to 12 pounds of fresh produce,

beans, rice, milk, shelf stable milk.

And so it's amazing, and we buy from where it is.

So like with the stuff in Hawaii,

we would build the boxes with fresh produce from Hawaii

and help the local farmers.

We did it, we sent stuff actually during Jamaica,

we sent stuff with world vision.

So we partner with different 501C3s

to get that product quickly to where it needs to be.

And it's, you know, sometimes they don't have anything fresh.

We have to be really mindful.

We try to be culturally relevant to what we're sending,

make sure that the product is something

that the neighbors there will want.

And then we also are very careful to make sure

like if there's no electricity like what happens in Texas,

like when things shut down with the ice and, you know,

stuff like that, we'll make sure that it's like

stuff that can be eaten without cooking,

without a big kitchen to make it happen.

So we try really hard to be mindful with what we're doing

when we do any of this volunteering

and having her out there is just like a shock to some people

that drive with their car and then they open their box

and a van cause they're asking them how they are

and how things are doing.

And you know, it comes with wraparound services

of other diapers that might be available

and things of that nature.

I think that's amazing.

My last question before you go is what drives you

absolutely nuts that you see on Instagram

when it comes to produce.

There's gotta be things that you see that you're like, no.

It's that idea of like that it's just so easy

to get something from the farm, the idyllic farm to your table

and that it doesn't take, you know,

all these people harvesting it,

that the trucks that drive it there,

the sales arm that has to make it happen,

the distribution centers, all of those things

or against a clap, this isn't toilet paper, you know,

from the minute it's cut to the minute it gets to your plate,

there's, you know, maybe seven days, 10 days to get it there.

And so it takes a lot to get there

and there should be appreciation I think of

how we get our food on our plate.

So you just think if we,

you could infuse more appreciation from everyone

when it comes to how long it actually takes

for us to actually be eating it.

It's not like snap your fingers.

I also think that there's, listen,

like there's like the podcast circuits and the people

and we've, you know, we've had some of these people

come on the show and it's fine to talk

but I think there's this ideal like version

where like everything is in these local small farmers

markets and go to these small farms

and like that's how you should eat

and you shouldn't ever shop anywhere else

and you gotta watch out for this and that.

And I think sometimes like, yeah,

that in a perfect world of that actually exists

in that way great, but how does the entire population

get access to this kind of food

and is that realistic for everyone I don't know?

You're so right.

And I think that's probably something that bothers me more.

I think local is amazing when available,

but putting up like a road that like you'll only eat local.

I mean, I live in Chicago.

You're not getting local all year.

You might be able to get some things

that are grown in greenhouses or you might be able

to buy something in a hydroponics.

But outside of that, like we need the supply chain

and if we break this bigger system

that is coming from all these different places,

it you won't be able to have the variety

and the things that you want to be able to have

the nutrient dense that you need for your bodies.

Yeah, and I think sometimes it's not fair to the farmers

because a lot of these farmers are trying to mass produce

in order to supply the supply chain that is required.

And there's a little bit of like a ho,

they're doing it, like they shouldn't be doing it that way.

But if again, if all of these supply chains start to crumble

and go, where are these farmers stop producing,

the world is gonna be met with a much bigger problem.

Totally.

And I think it's about bringing silos together.

I think we can have local, when available,

I think we could support local farmers,

but let's think about how do we bring

these different things together?

So we have a holistic, healthy supply chain.

How can everyone support you and planet harvest?

Planet Harvest on Instagram.

And if you have any ideas that you have fruits

and vegetables in your products,

you can reach out to us to be able to look at

how can you source, how can you look at your supply chain

to get more access into that.

And if you do anything for like impact work

or any way of getting boxes out there,

we would love to talk to you about getting fresh fruits

and vegetables into what you do to give to communities.

Amazing.

Melissa, thank you so much for coming on the show.

Thank you guys.