I first discovered the Larabar whole food nutrition bar at Henry’s Market in Hemet. I had grown tired of the same old nutrition bars – and had begun to wonder just how healthy they really were. I found Larabars so refreshing and I felt so good eating them that I personally contacted the originator, Lara Merriken of Humm Foods, and asked for an interview. Much to my delight, she agreed. What follows is a healthy piece of that conversation.

It was nice to talk to the CEO of a company that cares deeply not only about its product, but also the people who consume it. I believe this is one of the contributing factors in the amazing success of Larabars. Read on….

Healthy Times: So, you’ve been in business since 2000?

Lara Merriken: 2003, actually. My idea came to me in 2000, and we launched the company in 2003. So were 2 years old this month.

Healthy Times: Tell me about your experience so far….

Lara Merriken: Well, the first year we mainly were a Colorado company. People were really excited about our product and we got some really good press, so we began to expand into California. And last year we became a national and international brand. So, our 2nd year in business was just phenomenal. Now we’re sold all over the US, in Canada, the U.K. and Singapore. We’re pretty excited!

Healthy Times: How did the idea for Larabars come to you?

Lara Merriken: Well, I actually had planned to go to school to become a naturopathic doctor. I had been accepted into school and was within 2 months of going. Then one day I went hiking and began wondering why someone hadn’t come up with a snack that is made with whole, unprocessed raw foods. And it just went off in my head. I thought, “I should do this!” Nutrition has always been my focus and love in my life. I just knew it was the right thing for me. So, I deferred my enrollment in school and started to figure out how to put my idea into action.

Healthy Times: So, at that point you got out the food processor and began to play around with recipes?

Lara Merriken: Yeah, that’s’ exactly it. I knew I wanted to make this idea palatable to an audience beyond purely health conscious people. I wanted to make it a household name, or mainstream brand. And I knew in order to do that it had to taste good! I also didn’t want to abandon my foundational beliefs about health - I wanted it to be raw, whole foods with no additives.

So, I began to comb the grocery stores looking at the flavors of things like ice cream and cookies. I would look at the various flavors and ask myself how I could emulate that in a nutrition bar – and how to keep it healthy and make it taste good. That’s how I came up with our flavor profile.

Healthy Times: I noticed that dates are a highly used ingredient. I’ve always heard that dried fruits have high sugar content – and that diabetics or people prone to diabetes might be better off avoiding dried fruit….do you have any concern about the sugar content?

Lara Merriken: Well, there are a couple things. Dates are naturally sweet, but they still contain the fiber of the fruit – and even though they contain sugar, it is a natural sugar – not a refined or an added sugar. And, they are full of vitamins and minerals and enzymes that are so good for your body.

It’s also interesting in that when you combine dried fruit with nuts, like we have with the Larabar, that the food combination (because you get the good oils with the nuts) does not amount to a rise in blood sugar. It evens out the rise when you mix the fats with the natural sugar and fiber.

In fact, many diabetics successfully eat Larabars. We’ve even have a nationally known doctor who recommends them to his diabetic patients.

Healthy Times: Tell me about raw foods…I’m reading more and more about them in the press. They are supposed to be better for you because they still contain their natural enzymes…

Lara Merriken: The enzymes in food help you digest and utilize nutrients. That’s their function. When you cook foods, you lose the enzymes and some of the nutrients. So, alot of people eat so much cooked food that over time it’s possible they aren’t getting near the nutritional benefit that they could be. Food is more alive in its raw form, and contains the enzymes, vitamins and minerals that we need.

Healthy Times: There are so many protein bars out there…shopping for one is like standing in the candy isle, there are so many. Why wouldn’t you make a high protein version of Larabar?

Lara Merriken: It’s not that we wouldn’t consider making a high protein Larabar. There are natural sources of protein we might consider. The idea in introducing our brand was to introduce a simple, whole food product. My feeling was, the more whole foods we eat the better. We wanted a real food bar. My feeling is also that we should get protein from its natural source – and there is natural protein in Larabars.

Healthy Times: Do you have some new products on the drawing board?
Lara Merriken: We just introduced this month two new flavors. One of them is “Ginger Snap”. The other is “Cocoa Mole”. It’s chocolate, cinnamon and a hint of chili.

Healthy Times: What are your thoughts on the Wellness Industry – where things are headed and how you’d like to fit in?

Lara Merriken: I think that we’re such a fast paced society. We all want things to be fast and convenient. And we want our food that way too. I personally believe that much of our illness and poor health conditions come from the foods we eat. So, my idea with Larabar is to provide a fast, convenient and healthy alternative to the fast and convenient foods that are currently available.

I think people are realizing more and more that prevention matters. That what you put in your body matters. There is a cause and effect relationship between how we take care of ourselves and our likelihood of living a long and healthy life. I think the explosion of the Wellness Industry is directly related to this kind of realization.

At Larabar we want our contribution to be products that are truly beneficial to our health. No matter what we do in our lives, our health determines the quality of it. So for us to make a real contribution in this area is a wonderful thing!

Healthy Times: I definitely hear in your voice how important this is to you!
Lara Merriken: Thank you for taking interest in what we’re doing!

You can find Lara Merriken at larabar.com