Is This the End for Daily Harvest?

Daily Harvest took the superfood and health food industries by storm.  Every time you came across an ad in 2019-2020, it was for a Daily Harvest product.  Influencers and youtubers promoted Daily Harvest with all that was within them.  Some bragged how they loved the convenience of Daily Harvest and sold the masses on the idea that one could consume healthy food without having to do the work of sourcing and preparing it themselves. It was simple. Head right to the freezer, pull out a fonio grits bowl and dragonfuit smoothie and free up your time for other essential duties.  

What Happened at Daily Harvest

One thing is sure: Daily Harvest is a marketing force to be reckoned with.  They used various methods to market and won over a vast customer base which includes celebrities such as Gwyneth Paltrow and chef Bobby Flay.  Not only that, they managed to keep their customers and became so successful that they received a valuation between $1B-$10B.  Currently, the tides have changed.

Daily Harvest experienced a major hiccup last year after introducing their plant based protein (Frentil Lentil Leek Crumbles).  As a customer of Daily Harvest, I can say that I had no clue about this new plant protein and that’s likely because I may have taken myself off the email list. However, I still order Daily Harvest from time to time.  Come to think of it, I actually placed an order a few months ago but had no idea about crumble gate.  I didn’t receive any notifications about the issue.  There’s a chance that I may have seen the product on the website last year as I did place orders then however, it wasn’t likely that I’d order it because there are other amazing meatless crumbles that I’m a regular consumer of and to which I don’t think the taste can be beat.  I’m sure these competitors may have been elated to know that DH’s meatless crumbles did not perform so well however, they probably did not see DH’s meatless crumbles as competition to begin with.   Surely though, they weren’t elated to know that potential customers got severely sick from consuming Daily Harvest’s product.

After the release of their Lentil & Leek crumbles, over 130 people ended up in the hospital severely sick from the plant based crumbles.  Many of the customers who ate the crumbles experienced gastrointestinal issues and abnormal liver function.   Sadly, 40 of them had to have their gallbladders removed.

Customers who did become sick were unhappy with the way Daily Harvest handled the situation.  When the earliest cases of sicknesses were recorded, Daily Harvest did not notify the FDA to let them know that the product needed a recall.  Currently there are close to 400-recorded adverse events for the Leek and Lentil Crumbles.  Daily Harvest finally managed to alert the FDA in June of 2022 and officially recalled 28,000 units of the product.  They offered a $10 credit to those who had been affected, many of whom blew up the Daily Harvest email databases with messages of anger and upset towards the company and its employees. Customers felt that Daily Harvest could have offered a better solution.

What Was In the Meatless Crumbles?

Most are probably curious as to what made individuals become sick from the meatless crumbles.  The ingredient is called tara flour. Tara is a protein rich flour made from seed pods of a spiny tree.  

The tree grows in South America and were used to produce the flour which is not actually safe for human consumption.  I can get DH’s initial attraction to tara flour.  People who like eating healthy also have a tendency to like the new and different when it comes to food.  They want to be the first to try that new unique ingredient that will grant them bolts of energy and have them doing back to back cartwheels at 55 years old!  It’s proof that the new and different may not always be good for you so it’s best to do your own research before consuming a new food that you’ve never heard of.  There are other protein rich seeds that Daily Harvest could have used instead such as moringa or flax seeds and even teff flour.

Is it the end for Daily Harvest?

Daily Harvest has thrived on their motto: “Super Food, Super Fast.”  Things haven’t been going all that well for Daily Harvest since crumble gate.  Their valuation has likely decreased as sales have plummeted.  They’ve endured a second round of layoffs and their CEO, Rachel Drori was dropped from Forbes rich list.  

The truth is that Daily Harvest made a mistake and everyone deserves to get a second chance after making a mistake.  Daily Harvest’s goal was a wholesome one and they helped hundreds of thousands of people eat better and healthier.  They helped the environment immensely offering clean, nutritious and animal free foods.  Once you have a transformative mission, you can definitely make it.  So no, it’s not the end of Daily Harvest.  They may just have to operate a little differently this time around.