Cork-based juice bar brings healthy drinks directly to customers

We've moved beyond the comfort foods of the first lockdown and are now looking for healthy fare such a ready-to-go juices

Claire and Charlie Scanlan have recently launched Jump Juice Direct, a door-to-door service. 

IF the last lockdown in March was all about banana bread and sourdough starter, this one may yet prove to be about renewing our focus on healthy eating.

Grow it Yourself, for instance, has launched a Grow it Forward programme, designed to get the nation growing, cooking and eating some of their own food at home. Safefood’s Start campaign encourages parents to use lockdown to introduce healthy habits at home, while Healthy Ireland, a Government-led initiative, is urging people to do one small thing this winter to keep them well.

Little wonder, then, that Cork-based company, Jump Juice Bars, has just launched Jump Juice Direct, a door-to-door service aimed at helping health-conscious people and their families get the daily five to seven portions of fruit and vegetables recommended by dietitians.

The company has been forced to temporarily close some of its 24 stores nationwide due to reduced footfall during the pandemic but Covid-19 restrictions also had an upside: it gave them an opportunity to develop the delivery service they had been working on for some time.

“It’s a natural extension of our desire to bring our nutritious offering to Irish consumers and it makes sense for us as our natural, gentle preservation method keeps our juices fresh for up to 45 days so our customers don’t need to make daily orders,” co-founder and managing director, Charlie Scanlan, tells 'Feelgood'.

He and his wife Claire are huge advocates of healthy eating and they came up with the idea of developing a juice bar 17 years ago when they found it difficult to find healthy ‘ready to go’ food and drink choices when out and about.

They embarked on a research journey to the health hotspots of the United States, Canada and Australia, looking for the most environmentally friendly and sustainable way to run a business. When they opened their first juice bar in Waterford city in 2003, they used those insights to open a business that focused on sustainability and sourced as many ingredients as possible locally to support Irish producers.

“We knew within weeks that we’d responded to a need that wasn’t just our own,” Scanlan recalls.

Now the company wants to reach people who can’t get to them due to the restrictions that have challenged so many in the food and drink sector.

“Jump Juice Direct allows us to reach our regulars, but it also opens us up to the audience who are looking for convenience, value and nutrition during the lockdown and beyond,” Scanlan explains.

The couple says they have already seen a change in consumer habits in this lockdown compared to the last.

“Interestingly,” Scanlan says, “autumn and winter can be as busy for us as spring and summer as people want to try to protect their immune systems better and we’re predicting that will be amplified further this winter season.”

The couple is also predicting an increase in demand for juice cleanses as people have been over-indulging in recent months due to the novelty and boredom of the first lockdown paired with the freedom and celebration in summer. Jump Juice Direct offers one-day, three-day or five-day juice cleanses. Each option includes a selection of cold-pressed juices, smoothies, wellness shots and a pack of either peanut butter or coconut protein balls per day.

While lockdown has brought a renewed focus on our healthy – and less healthy – eating habits, Claire and Charlie Scanlan have noticed a steady increase in awareness of health and wellness in Ireland over the last two decades.

“We’ve grown at a steady rate, signalling that health and wellness in Ireland isn’t a fad industry and that we, as a nation, have been trying to make better choices for some time,” Charlie says.

On a personal note, for Claire and Charlie Scanlan good nutrition is key. As Charlie explains: “We both have always viewed food as fuel and our bodies as engines that allow us to do the things we want to do. We’re busier than ever growing the business so we have to look after ourselves, and with three young sons, it’s important we eat well to set a great example and encourage good eating habits in them.”

To order see www.jumpjuicedirect.ie.