Outlaw News: Pioneering transparency in energy drinks

Outlaw films Hiball Energy trip to India

By Megan Paulson Outlaw Partners COO

After flying 16,335 miles across the globe and driving 400 miles, Outlaw Partners’ Video Director Brian Niles got a firsthand look at what it takes to source and process organic caffeine.

This December, Niles traveled with Hiball Energy to Bangalore, India to film a short documentary on Hiball’s premium ingredient: organic caffeine.

Hiball’s founder Todd Berardi and Dan Craytor, director of sales, initiated the seven-day trip to see and experience the ingredients at their source.

“The Hiball trip to India is something I will cherish the rest of my life,” Berardi said. “To be able to go to this magical forest setting, meet the farmers and pick, sort and pulp the organic green coffee beans that we use to extract organic caffeine … was surreal.”

The caffeine used in all Hiball energy drinks is derived from fair trade, organic arabica coffee beans found in the countryside northwest of Bangalore. The adventure took the team to the Thippanahalli coffee estate in Chikmangalur, where they observed and documented the process of preparing organic arabica coffee beans.

The trip and documentation also marked a significant step in providing transparency in Hiball’s energy drink ingredients. Hiball pioneered “good energy” when it launched back in the mid-2000s – using only naturally occurring, organic, healthy ingredients of the highest quality.

“We traveled halfway around the world through 11 time zones in

order to usher in a new era of transparency in the energy drink category,” Craytor said. “Many people are afraid of energy drinks, and rightly so, since many mainstream brands over the years have created mystery around what may or may not be in their products. Likely because they are relying on cheap, lab-synthesized artificial ingredients.”

Craytor says that by going to the organic coffee farms – the source of its primary active ingredient, organic caffeine – allows consumers to connect the dots themselves. “It was an incredible experience to immerse ourselves in the organic farming community and witness the process,” he said.

For Outlaw, the trip was equally inspiring – from visiting the beautiful Indian countryside to meeting hard working, wonderful and hospitable people.

“The best part for me was being able to capture this incredible process on film, and witnessing the impact the trip had on the Hiball crew,” Niles said. “Todd and Dan have always been so passionate about the Hiball brand, and this experience only solidified that passion and commitment. Outlaw is proud to help support their efforts.”

For Berardi, the trip further validated Hiball’s mission of making the healthiest and most sustainable energy drinks on the planet.

“We are excited to bring this transparency to light as our organic and fair trade ingredients for energy are what makes Hiball unique, premium and efficacious – versus mainstream energy drinks that are artificial, synthetic and full of ingredients that don’t reside in nature,” said Berardi.

As the best-selling and fastest-growing natural energy drink in the U.S., Craytor says that Hiball has a responsibility to consumers above and beyond the typical energy drink brand.

“It’s time people had an energy drink they can feel good about,” he said. “Things are about to change!”