Mona.Vie

*From: http://www.kare11.com/news/news_article.aspx?storyid=517749&catid=2

At a glance, it may look like a wine-tasting party. After all, the guests are drinking a dark-colored liquid poured from a tall glass bottle.

But they're actually drinking fruit juice.

It's called MonaVie.

Ann and Ken Berglund invite friends, relatives and neighbors into their home every week to try it.

"I became a believer after I tried it and saw what it did for me," says Ann, a MonaVie distributor.

The main ingredient is the acai berry, which comes from the Amazon rainforest and is now found in many juices, smoothies and teas.

Dr. Nicholas Perricone, a well-known nutritionist, called acai "nature's perfect energy fruit" in his 2005 best-selling book, The Perricone Promise: Look Younger, Live Longer in Three Easy Steps.

MonaVie markets itself as "the premier acai blend," and sales are skyrocketing. The company says it's shipping out more than one million bottles a week.

In addition to acai, the juice features 18 other fruits, but the company will not say how much of each fruit is in each bottle.

The health benefits of the berry and the juice are still being studied, but those who drink it swear by it.

"For me, it's just a convenient way to get my fruit," says Tracy Sajady. "When I started drinking the juice, I did feel a little better. I just felt like I had a kick in my step. I was sleeping better."

Many MonaVie users admit they didn't eat many fruits or vegetables before they started drinking the juice.

"It's all the fruit I'm not gonna eat," says Carmela Sterling. "I'm gonna drink it."

But drinking it is not cheap. The retail price for a 25.3-ounce bottle is $45. MonaVie recommends drinking four ounces a day, which means each bottle lasts about a week. That adds up to about $180 a month for one person.

"When you drink MonaVie, it makes you feel good and you can't put a price on that," Sterling says. "It's worth $45 a bottle."

Sterling is also a MonaVie distributor, which means she gets the juice for less. After paying a $39 membership fee, distributors get MonaVie for wholesale prices. And if distributors get others to buy or sell MonaVie, the company pays them.

For some MonaVie drinkers, sharing the juice is a business. And there's financial incentive to get others to drink it.

About 200 people filled a Holiday Inn conference room in early July to learn more about MonaVie's business opportunities.

"It can be very profitable," says Katie Hall, a MonaVie distributor.

MonaVie isn't the only high-priced juice out there. Other popular drinks include Xango, which features the mangosteen fruit and costs $37.50 a bottle, and Tahitian Noni, which includes the noni fruit and goes for $42 a bottle.

"To me, that seems a bit high," says Susan Haines with the Minnesota Dietetic Association. She's not convinced these so-called "superjuices" are the best - or cheapest - way to get what your body needs.

"I personally would rather have a variety of fruits and vegetables in my diet," Haines says.

KARE 11 wanted to know what it would cost to eat five servings of fruits and vegetables a day for a week. So we went to Super Target and bought spinach, apples, bananas, raspberries, blueberries and orange juice.

It all added up to about 35 servings. The total cost was just shy of $20. Keep in mind, it will cost more if you eat more than five servings a day. And it will likely cost more if you buy all organic foods.

Statistics show most people don't eat at least five servings of fruits and vegetables a day, which is recommended by the federal government. Haines says if more people did that, they'd feel the health benefits.

"Most fruits and vegetables are superfoods, in my book," Haines says.

Back at the Berglund's tasting party, guest Betty Jo Zepeda is now sold on MonaVie.

"I don't need any more convincing," she says after a 30-minute presentation.

Zepeda feels the juice is an easy way to get more fruit into her diet, even with the high price tag.

"I say to them, 'Try it, you tell me what it does for you,'" Ann Berglund says. "If you're interested in drinking it, then continue to drink it. If not, so be it."

MonaVie's website says the juice's purpose is not to treat, cure or prevent disease. Still, one distributor told KARE 11 that her cholesterol has dropped since she started drinking MonaVie. Another told KARE 11 it helped her husband's arthritis. And another distributor said the pain in his knees totally went away and he's convinced it's because of the juice.

It's important to note that such claims are not proven. MonaVie is a food product and not a drug.

By Joe Fryer, KARE 11 News Read Joe's Blog

(Copyright 2008 by KARE. All Rights Reserved.)

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