February 26, 2004

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: John W Roulac, (800) 993-4367

Nutiva Expands with Organic Coconut

Sebastopol, CA (February 26, 2004) — Nutiva, a manufacturer of hemp food products, today announced the expansion of its product focus to include organic coconut products.

"Nutiva customers often ask me what kind of cooking oil is the healthiest. While hemp oil is best used raw for dressings, coconut oil is the ideal all-purpose cooking oil," says Nutiva founder and president John W. Roulac. "Coconut, like hemp, has been unfairly demonized by powerful interests,"  he adds. "Olive oil is also very healthy, yet with its low smoke point, it is best used raw or for very light sautéing."

The coconut, which is really a very large seed, has, like hemp, a long and illustrious history as a foundational food source. Coconut oil is rich in medium-chain saturated fatty acids, which have numerous health-giving qualities. Hemp's unsaturated Omega-3 and -6 EFAs and coconut oil's healthy saturated fats are also quite complementary.

With the FDA requiring the labeling of "trans fats" in 2006, the entire fat category is undergoing a review of current and past traditions and beliefs. Nutiva is well positioned to deliver the nourishing "good fats" of hemp and coconut, which can play a vital role in health. Outdated "corporate-speak" assumptions such as "zero fat is good" . . . "tropical fats are bad" . . . "vegetable oils are good" are being increasingly questioned by millions of Americans.

The traditional Pacific Islander diet consists of large quantities of coconuts, and Pacific Islanders who still follow this diet have a low incidence of heart disease or weight problems. When a Western-style diet including vegetable oils is substituted for this traditional diet, all of the diseases common in the United States are then seen to increase.

Nutiva is readying for market a variety of delicious organic coconut foods, with its first new product introduction scheduled for the Anaheim natural food show, Natural Products Expo West, in early March.

NUTIVA NOURISHES PEOPLE AND PLANET
Nutiva is dedicated to a healthy and sustainable world for all, demonstrating its mission to nourish people and planet by using healthy organic ingredients, enriching the soil, and supporting worthy causes by donating 1 percent of sales to groups that promote sustainable agriculture. Founded in 1999, Nutiva offers nutritious organic hemp and flax food bars, hemp protein powder, hemp oil, shelled hempseed, and extra-virgin coconut oil nationwide through more than 2,000 natural food retailers, including Whole Foods Markets and Wild Oats. Hempseed is the world's most nutritious seed—a rich source of Omega-3, GLA, vitamin E, and protein. For more information, visit http://www.nutiva.com or call (800) 993-4367.