50 Great States/50 Great Companies: Maryland and Honest Tea

Their teas have less sugar but boy this company’s values are pretty sweet.

Great stories have adventure, passion, and a cast of characters that entertain like a professor or someone named Zeus. The story of Honest Tea has all of these thing and more. Through a number of random events the stars aligned for this home grown brand. The idea for a beverage that wasn't sugary sweet was seeded in a business school classroom between Seth Goldman and his professor Barry Nalebuff during a discussion about a Coke vs. Pepsi case study. Both men saw the hole in the marketplace for a drink that wasn't packed with high fructose corn syrup junk. Fast forward a few years to New York City, and enter Juice Master Zeus ... Seth's friend that had made a habit of creating his own refreshing concoctions in his kitchen to hydrate after a major workout. And that's when the light bulb went off. Seth got back in touch with professor Barry and asked him to step out on a limb, to create an all-natural beverage brand that was founded in good ethics and honest business. After quitting his day job, working for weeks on a recipe in his kitchen and one awesome meeting with Fresh Fields (Whole Foods) Honest Tea was born. Based in Bethesda, Maryland in 1998, their first year of business they had 3 employees and sales of $250,000. In 2008, their 10th year of business they had 81 employees and sales of $38 million dollars.

So yes, they are a successful company, but what good does that do you? I'll tell you — it's all in the name. Check out the list below for some facts about the company's good deeds.

Let's get Honest:

• Organic Certification: All products are USDA certified organic which means that no antibiotics, pesticides, irradiation or bioengineering go into any Honest product. Organic farmers must follow certain soil and water conservation methods, and their practices are monitored by third-party certification agencies.
• Less Sugar: With a mindful eye towards the obesity problem in America, and the desire to be a good company that makes products that are good for you, Honest Teas have less sugar than other beverages on the market.
• Fair Trade: Being Fair Trade is important to Honest; it ensures that everyone who is involved in the tea making process has the opportunity to lead a fair and good life. Honest seeks suppliers who practice sustainable farming and respect individual workers and their families. The company offers a number of teas that are Fair Trade Certified and complies with specific criteria set by Trans Fair International to ensure equality and fairness. For more info on Fair Trade Certification go here, or for stories about Honest Teas Fair Trade practices go here.
• Packaging: The PET bottles are fully recyclable (PETE 1), Phthalates free, they are not made with the chemical Bisphenol A (BPA) and require less energy to produce and ship. The company recently switched to a thinner bottle, one which is 22 percent lighter saving money and resources.

Facts about Maryland:

• Babe Ruth, the Sultan of Swat, was born in Baltimore and attended Saint Mary's Industrial School.
• America's national anthem was written by Francis Scott Key a Maryland lawyer. It is believed Key wrote the anthem on September 14, 1814 while watching the bombardment of Fort McHenry in Baltimore Harbor.
• Maryland forests cover approximately 2.7 million acres, or 43 percent of the states land surface.
• Maryland has forty-seven operational State parks, including seven parks with waterfront areas, covering 90,239 acres; 15 State-owned lakes and ponds open to public fishing; nine State forests and portions of 15 State parks open to public hunting; 36 wildlife management areas, covering 88,348 acres, open to public hunting; six natural environment areas containing 7,676 acres.
• Clara Barton National Historic Site commemorates the life of Clara Barton, founder of the American Red Cross. The house in Glen Echo served as her home and headquarters for the American Red Cross and a warehouse for disaster relief supplies.

Read more Dollars and Sense.

Images provided by Honest Tea.