Starting From Stone:

Dear friends,

Today we start the journey to free our oceans from plastic. A very ambitious, complicated and difficult mission, but a noble and critical one.

Okeanos™ was born from its namesake: our single ocean, the life support of our planet. All of earth’s oceans is just one single body of water, uniting all countries and peoples regardless of race, religion, creed, or color.

And here we are, face-to-face with its demise. The problem of plastic pollution has taken too far a toll on the ocean and it’s up to us as a challenge of our own humanity, to fix it.

Our solution is nothing out of the ordinary or revolutionary. In fact, it has been the most obvious answer that was right in front of us all along. Made From Stone™ products mimic what nature has always done: borrow naturally occurring calcium carbonate for a set amount of time and then return the stone back to earth so it can be reused. No different from how birds, clams, crabs or even coral do it.  We have millions of years of earth testing, we know it works. Mother Nature always gives back what it receives.

Now, we are not perfect. As it stands, our solution is not entirely perfect. It is not the end-all bandaid on the massive wounds that our planet suffers from— but it is the best solution right now. It’s a solution that is moving towards perfection with the help and determination of an unceasingly dedicated team.

Okeanos™ exists because of the serendipitous encounters of people who have the passion, talent, and fortitude to fix this problem. In four months, we have amassed over a hundred dedicated team members set on accomplishing the mission. Our international team of doctors, engineers, marketers, environmentalists, geologists, attorneys are still not enough to help us solve this. We need you.

With the launch of each Made From Stone™ product, we will  begin to chip away at this problem and we hope you will join us. We can start by making a shift to a lifestyle that helps the planet, one that does no harm and leaves no trace. Every Made From Stone™ product you buy not only degrades naturally back to stone, but also funds our partners who are working diligently to clean, research, and fight for this planet. Together, we are making waves of change.

From sea to shining sea,

Florencio Cuétara

How do you define your brand name and identity?
Wonder Co makes plant based (coconut) products that taste amazing, are flavorful, made and packaged in a sustainable way whilst respecting the land and the people where we grow, source, process and package – the Philippines.

What makes it unique?
We focus on taste and flavor with minimal processing, minimal impact on the environment and maximum benefit to our partners. The Philippines is blessed with an amazing climate and ecology, we’re simply making the most of what it delivers with the help of farmers, cooperatives and local partners.

Why Okeanos™? Made From Stone™?
My goal is to be sustainable across the value chain and to have as small a waste packaging footprint as possible. I was fortunate enough to find Made From Stone™ and it really is the missing piece of my value chain. I can put my hand on my heart and state that as a business we are sustainable and that we are conscious enterprise that is not adding to the global waste disaster.

Who is your target audience?
Everyone who is health conscious, concerned for the environment as it relates to food production. All those that either want to consume less or don’t want or can’t consume animal products but do want great tasting plant based dairy products for eating, drinking or cooking. 

Is your brand a brand with mission?
My goal is to work with my amazing partners to bring incredible products – fresh, tasty, good for you. We are passionate about what we have produced and what we will continue to deliver to the global consumer – that passion comes from a willingness to give things a go, never take no for an answer whilst at the same time being conscious that we should be taking better care of ourselves and the environment that we are purely guardians of.

Tell us your story in one paragraph?
Wonder Foods is the result of time, lessons learnt and the refinement of numerous product ideas and out of necessity for the founder. I have for some time, wanted to create a non dairy product range – not just for me, but also timely for the growing global dietary trend away from dairy.

Where is are launching and why? What resources does he use?
Wonder Foods is a global company with facilities in the Philippines and New Zealand. Our products are coconut based; grown and created in the Philippines [which has] an amazing climate and ecology. We’re simply making the most of what it delivers with the help of farmers, cooperatives and local partners.

Wherever and whatever touches the ocean, that’s where Okeanos™ wants to be. Mother Nature depends on it and we’re here to make sure of it, which is why we’ve decided to venture outside of our office in Miami Beach…a little eastward. And by a little, we mean 7,824 miles to be exact. We spent some time visiting our colleagues at our Dubai offices where they shared a discussion on the importance of making waves of change right now.

Why did you decide to bring Okeanos™ to this part of the world?
We were always looking for business that also has meaning, a business that can add to the community and respects the nature that we were blessed with. Made From Stone™ gives a solution that will have a huge impact on single use plastic disposal and will contribute to furthering innovations and technology.

Why is Made From Stone™ important to you?
Our region is full of wonderful nature spots and great people and we want to improve their lives. It is sad when we see plastic bags hanging on fins or straws dropped on beaches knowing that these will stay for generations over generations. This is why Made From Stone™ is important. Instead of a plastic bag floating on the red sea we will have a natural resource giving back to nature.

What is the importance of the ocean to people in your region?
Sea has always been an important aspect of our people in the Middle East. We have the Red Sea, which was named after its magnificent coral reefs. We eat from the sea, we dive in the sea, we relax watching the beautiful sunset in Jeddah or the amazing sunrise in Dubai beaches and waterfronts…. Sea is one of the most important tourist attractions that we have.

What products are we manufacturing in the Middle East?
We are targeting the high impact items now such as straws, cutlery, restaurant plastics, drinking cups, and lids.

What products do you wish to see manufactured in the future?
Every single use plastic. This is what we want! See Plastic is not bad… it is the amount we produce and dispose. Plastic is a great material that opened the world for us but we are the ones misusing it. We need to get that back to the right path and the thank nature for what it is giving us.

Who should use Made From Stone™?
Basically every single use plastic producer or consumer should switch to Made From Stone™, to begin with. Then, every brand can replace their plastic packaging as well! We need to give back to nature, and Made From Stone™ does that!

When will we launch in the middle east?
Our target to launch is October/November 2019; we are in the works arranging with local partners.

What is your favorite product?
That is a hard question… it’s like asking a father who is your favorite child! My favorite product is our mission: to replace all single use plastic.

Where would you like to see Okeanos™™ next?
Everywhere… across the globe. Even in space if we need to. We are responsible of this universe and we should do what is best for it.

Is there anything else you’d like to include?
Every human being is responsible for nature and we owe our descendants a healthy and clean place to live in. Single use plastic is thrown away in the garbage or recycling bin and then we think it’s dealt with, but that is not the case. Things don’t just disappear, they have to go somewhere.

Affiliates: Whale-Come

Welcome, whalecome! Okeanos has partnered with the Center for Cetacean Research & Conservation, an organization dedicated to the wellbeing of our one ocean. Our latest affiliates conduct research with whales and dolphins, and they’re known for their work in the Cook Islands, where they learn about whales and implement their knowledge in conservation across the globe. They study the effects of climate change and ocean pollution on whales and “protect the largest animal in the world, living in the largest ecosystem in the world … our ancient Ocean.” Our like-mindedness and parallel missions to save the ocean are so closely aligned, this partnership was a no brainer!