In episode 110 of the Disruptors for GOOD podcast, we speak with David Cutler, Co-founder of Fortuna Cools and Nutshell Coolers on creating a sustainable cooler with natural insulated packaging out of upcycled coconut husk fiber.
David is the co-founder and CEO of Fortuna Cools, a company leading the transition from plastic foam to natural fiber packaging, reducing supply chain waste in the process. David and his colleagues developed Fortuna’s Coconut Cooler with partners in Southeast Asia and launched the Nutshell Sustainable Cooler to bring this same combination of sustainability and performance to the consumer cooler market.
Prior to Fortuna, David was a database management consultant in Asia and policy analyst in Washington DC. David studied politics at Middlebury College and received a Master’s in Environmental Policy from Stanford University.
The Fortuna Cools Mission
Fortuna Cools is replacing plastic foam insulation once and for all. In its place, the company uses coconut fiber, a leftover waste product of the enormous coconut meat industry. Nine billion coconut husks are burned as garbage every year in the Philippines alone. Fortuna’s coconut fiber insulation avoids CO2 emissions from incineration and provides extra income for impoverished coconut farmers. Fortuna partners with rural communities in the Philippines to build coolers that last years. Impact is built into every Fortuna Cooler we sell.
About the Nutshell Cooler
The Nutshell Cooler is Fortuna’s first consumer product. The Modern Sustainable Cooler. Sustainable but sturdy, spacious but foldable: Nutshell is a thoughtfully-designed cooler for lovers of the outdoors. Nutshell is insulated with fiber from upcycled coconut husks which would otherwise have been burned as waste.
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