Juice Me
Ultra-Fresh, Revitalizing, and Delivered
by Holly Madrigal
The tang of fresh carrot dances across my tongue. Hints of tart apple with a slight kick of turmeric taste so alive that it feels like I’m mainlining nutrients. A cheerful colorful heart adorns each recycled glass bottle of Juice Me. The ingredient list is simplicity itself: turmeric, carrot, lemon, apple, cayenne, love.
Daphne Allen, creator and owner of Juice Me, has been into juicing her whole life. A Mendocino native, her parents lived off the land. Her rustic roots led to a lot of juicing in her early years, and she has fond memories of the juice bar (now the herb and tea room) that used to be upstairs at Corners of the Mouth. In her memories, they only had carrot juice, but it was a treat.
This ethos of conscious living permeates her other work as well. In 2018, she was doing some research through a program called Food Matters, based in Australia. She learned that her body was craving nourishment, so she started doing intermittent juice fasts and enjoyed how she felt. Then, because of some minor health issues, she began to wonder what it would be like to include regular juicing in her lifestyle. She included 64 oz of juiced mixed vegetables each day, adding a small amount of apple for just a hint of sweetness. Daphne explains, “The juice is a combination of cold pressed juice and blended whole vegetables which makes it unique because it includes fiber and enzymes. When I first started juicing this way for myself my health improved greatly.”
The change was noticeable. “I gained energy and felt so much better. I started drinking this large amount of juice each day and pretty much ate what I wanted to eat other than that. I found that once I began receiving these bioavailable nutrients and fiber, I didn’t crave much junk food or breads or sweets,” she explained.
Nutritional deficiencies can cause cravings for less-healthy foods, and unfortunately, many Americans are in this state regularly. Our industrial food processing has stripped many foods of the vitamins that they began with. Fresh juices retain many of the nutrients that the plants started out with and make the vitamins, enzymes, and fiber easier for bodies to absorb.
Some friends and neighbors noticed the changes in Daphne and asked her to juice for them. “It took off from there,” Daphne laughed. “At some point, I called the health department to make sure I was doing it all correctly and safely. Pretty soon I just had to start the business to meet the demand.” And Juice Me was born, and it has grown and flourished.
The business has expanded greatly from its humble beginnings in her home kitchen. The format is an exercise in simplicity. Each bottle is labeled with the five or so ingredients and dated so that consumers know how fresh it is. Daphne and her husband built a commercial kitchen at the inn they run. “We have this dedicated team, and we could not do it without them. The team juices, packages, and delivers each day. And the community here has been so supportive, with businesses like Harvest Market taking a chance on us.” Daphne noted, “We credit the stores for what doesn’t sell, so there is no risk to them. Juice loses its nutritional content over time, so we ensure that what people are drinking is the freshest and healthiest available.”
The couple both spent large parts of their lives down in the East Bay, so as the juice business succeeded in Mendocino County, even in the midst of a global pandemic, they decided to open a satellite kitchen in Contra Costa County. “We were essential juicers,” laughed Daphne. “We say that we deliver each morning … like the milkman, but freshly made, healthy juice.” The rainbow of glass jars on the porch would bring a smile to anyone’s face.
Deliveries can now be received on the Mendocino Coast, Willits, Redwood Valley, and Boonville, as well as Contra Costa County and some locations in Oakland. Additionally, you can pick up one of these colorful gems at A Frame Expresso and Harvest Market in Fort Bragg, GoodLife Cafe & Bakery, The Waiting Room in Mendocino, and at many other locations. Juice Me purchases their produce through Veritable Vegetable, which sources their organic produce from family farms throughout California. This leads to a price point that is not inexpensive (though certainly healthier than a latte habit like my own).
Reflecting on her personal journey, Daphne added, “Once my body knew it could count on these nutrients, those 64 oz a day, it stopped asking me for those breads and sweets. It changed my cravings over time. In my experience, 8 oz a day would not show significant health changes, but 32 oz or 64 oz daily certainly does. I don’t recommend taking away anything in your diet, but if you add our Green Juice or one of our other flavors, it may change you. Personally, I don’t think that you need to restrict but can shift to more intuitive eating.”
I’m not sure there has ever been a better time to focus on health, and that community desire is clearly fueling the success of this small business. Their expansion demonstrates that there is a craving for these unprocessed, healthier beverages. It’s the start of spring, when people begin to seek out fresher, healthier foods. Even if a juicing revolution is not in your plans, you may want to give these a try. Sipping the last bits of my carrot juice, I can feel the vitamins pouring into my body, and what’s that last ingredient? Oh yeah, I can taste the love.
Juice Me juices can be purchased at both Harvest Market locations, GoodLife Cafe and The Waiting Room in Mendocino, A Frame Expresso Drive Thru in Fort Bragg and by delivery at JuiceMePlus.com.