Meet Ethan West | CEO & Founder

We had the good fortune of connecting with Ethan West and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Ethan, is your business focused on helping the community? If so, how?
Our business is rooted in bringing the best food FOR the world, to the world. There is a lot of buzz right now around regenerative agriculture, alternative proteins, plant-based everything and ultra-processed alternatives to naturally occurring food. We take an approach that seems progressive because we have, as a society, gotten so far disconnected from the sources of our food. The health of our living systems and the way that Piko Provisions operates is from a malama ʻāina (Native Hawaiian way of life of caring for and honoring the land) approach to everything we do and believe that through these tiny little smoothie pouches we can help restore natural systems in the land, with nature and with our neighbors.

By sourcing ingredients sustainably, grown regeneratively, processing them minimally and presenting them transparently we’re able to pay farmers above a living wage, add back regionally appropriate ingredients to the grocery store shelves and help be a platform for the stories of place-based story telling to help put the culture back in agriculture. Oh, and we also make really healthy and delicious baby food.

What should our readers know about your business?
Our business, Piko Provisions, is a small but super-powered team looking to change the way we feed our children. We believe that by putting regionally appropriate and sourced ingredients on the shelves, we can create more resilient and food secure communities. By supporting farmers practicing regenerative agriculture, we can leave this planet better than we found it for future generations by sharing their stories along the way we can make our food system a little less mysterious and a lot more connected.

We started in the Fall of 2019 in Honolulu Hawaii after a report came out from the group Healthy Babies Bright Futures that showed that 95 percent of tested baby foods contain toxic chemicals that lower babies’ IQ, including arsenic and lead. Starting a baby food company sourcing locally grown ingredients in an island economy that is dependent on around 90% of imported good was not an easy feat, but that made it all the more necessary. In addition to that the first road blocks we faced were on the food processing infrastructure across the state or rather the lack thereof. Our original plan was to send Hawaii grown produce to California to be processed, undergo high pressure processing and then reimported and distributed throughout the state (as is common for so many Hawaii companies). We incorporated in February of 2020 and set out on developing our first three recipes and one month later, COVID-19 shut down the world and it became all more important for us to keep those processing economies within our home state of Hawaii.

We hit the ground running, seemingly overnight setting up a local processing solution for our hundreds of farming partners and also working with state and local officials to address the processing infrastructure bottlenecks that entrepreneurs and farmers are faced with in Hawaii. By December 2020 we had developed, tested, marketed and launched our first three FDA approved regeneratively sourced little pouches of awesomeness in 1 retail location and direct to consumers. Since then we have grown to be distributed in over 130 locations in Hawaii with a growing interest across the United States for a clean, Hawaii-grown superfood product. We started to show that by taking care of the earth and supporting the people that do, you can have a healthier product and planet. We have since received two Purity Awards from the Clean Label Project and are on our way to share the best baby food for the world, with the world. This year we’re thinking beyond the pouch to be able to raise a generation on healthier food and will be developing a full range of baby foods and children’s snacks including puffed cereals, toddler meals and a juice line all including superfood and vegetable forward recipes grown by farmers that truly care across Hawaii.

If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?
Dining – One MUST stop when visiting Honolulu is a restaurant called Kapa Hale located in Kahala on the island on O’ahu. In addition to having a beautifully curated menu the chef’s dedication to sourcing local ingredients is bar-none. They take you on a true tour of terroir for Hawaii from field and fauna to the sea with beautifully crafted cocktails this restaurant I only recommend to folks who want a TRUE taste of Hawaii. Another crowd pleaser is Fete in Chinatown, again passionately dedicated towards sourcing local and elevating ingredients to a five star menu. They not only source local but feature their producers and often have special dinners where you can meet some of the producers. A new-comer to the scene is Nature in Waikiki which I have yet to try but based on friend referrals in the culinary scene and perusing their menu and website it will be my next stop. A go-to classic for a nice dinner on the town is Mud Hen & Water on Waialae Avenue in Kaimuki…and if you haven’t seen a theme by this point then we’ll give you one more shot. This restaurant helped break the mold back in the day of food sourcing and they quickly shot up to local and national stardom for their menu creativity and local sourcing. One of my all time favorite restaurants in Hawaii and always a crowd pleaser.

Activities – For a full day of adventuring you can’t go wrong with visiting Kualoa Ranch. From agritourism to see how and where your food is produced, to e-bike tours, horseback riding, ATV’s and an intimate tour through Jurassic Park! This place has it all for people of all ages and I’ve never had a bad time. They also truly care about taking care of the environment and have relationships with hotels and tourist groups to help educate about endemic species and working with nature and provide opportunities to engage in taking care of the earth while there.

If ocean activities are more your thing than snorkeling at Hanauma Bay can be a great family experience where you’re guaranteed to see a wide assortment of sea creatures and learn more about the reef ecosystem. Be sure to reserve a spot and pay attention to the educational video they share with you and also do your research on sunscreen!!! Chemical ridden sunscreen has been killing and bleaching coral reefs and marine ecosystems and ensuring you have a truly ocean-friendly product to protect you from sun damage and also protect our ocean friends from YOU damage is essential to ensuring this place stays alive and thriving for future visits.

Getting out on the trails and hiking can be an awesome and exciting trip, checking out Manoa Falls can be a quick and family friendly hike to see some of the beautiful rainforests and waterfalls on O’ahu. If I were recommending a full day of to-do I would start in the morning at Kualoa Ranch with an e-bike tour across the ranch and eat lunch at their on-site restaurant where they grow and source most if not all of what they serve then travel from Mauka to Makai and hit up Haunama Bay for some snorkeling and sun and then end with dinner at any of the restaurants mentioned above (make sure to get reservations for all of these far in advance).

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
It truly takes a village when you’re in a movement. So many hands have helped bring this dream into fruition and it will take so many more to be able to see it actualized and shared with other communities. Michael Nieling and the creative team at Ocupop have saved me a lifetime of trying to perfect my stick figure drawing with stepping in to assist on branding and visual story telling. Piko Provisions crew of trusted advisors has been there to help get out of the entrepreneurial echo chamber and includes, Danya Hakeem, Aaron Cates, Omar & Tarik Sultan and David Byrnes. Community impact organizations have assisted with polishing the business plan, funding, cultural and business guidance and include, preX by xlr8hi, Kuhana by the Council for Native Hawaiian Advancement, Mahi’ai Scale Up by Kamehameha Schools, Hawaii Investment Ready and all of the countless days and nights we’ve spent working with all of those teams on solutions for Hawaii’s food systems.

We owe a huge mahalo to Aline from Koko Kai for connecting us and supporting us at every step and to our farmers across Hawai’i as well. Kahumana Organic Farms and Hawai’i Ulu Cooperative have really helped to champion regenerative agriculture and enabling companies like Piko Provisions to be able to source local ingredients and increase access for local farmers.

My wife, Malia, has been and continues to be a source of inspiration, a sounding board and someone that without I would not have been able to do what I’m doing. My family has also been tireless champions of the work we’re doing and I owe where I am today to the upbringing on that little dairy farm in central Maine. Learning to work with nature and take care of your neighbors really set a foundation of selflessness that brought me to having my community trust in my ability to get the job done.

So many more giving individuals and organizations have helped along the way and if I missed anyone my sincere apologies and my deepest gratitude to everyone for your belief and support.