Andrew Cooper - Juiceman

Andrew Cooper is a model and an actor. He has appeared in numerous high-profile print and TV campaigns for brands including Dunhill, Topman, Georgio Armani, Paul Smith and Diet Coke. His love of juicing began at an early age, thanks to his mum, and has since become a way of life and a business venture through his range of Juiceman products. Andrew lives in Buckinghamshire with his wife and two children.

THE JUICEMAN STORY

As a northern lad growing up, writing a book about juice was never something I imagined I would do! My introduction to fresh fruit and vegetables did start at an early age as my mum made sure that we had as much home-grown and natural food as possible. But it wasnt until I was a bit older that I realized perhaps Mum actually does know best even though some of the soups she made were a bit odd. (Sorry, Mum.) Now I feel really lucky to have been raised in that way.

Some of my best memories are of home-cooked family meals. My granddad Andrew was a baker and my granddad Jack a butcher, so I was surrounded by enthusiastic food lovers from an early age. They taught me all about food: how to touch, smell and taste ingredients. And Ive always been interested in where food comes from, having spent hours digging up potatoes and pulling up carrots for my mum on a Sunday morning.

When I was seventeen, I broke the family mould and headed to London to pursue a career in music and fashion. I was no different to anyone else my age and was over-doing it by going out all the time. But I managed to supplement my busy lifestyle with healthy food and juices. I bought my first juicer at nineteen, an old-fashioned model that you had to put a paper liner into to catch the pulp. All of my friends thought I was an oddball for buying it. But it made great juice, even though the washing-up afterwards was a killer.

Luckily juicers became increasingly efficient and my love for juicing grew and grew. I would take regular trips to the farmers market in Queens Park for the wonderful fresh fruit and veg. Then my wife Jane and I had our very own escape to the country when our daughter, Taylor, was born and we bought an old fruit farm up in Cheshire.

At the same time, I was flying to the US weekly for modelling and acting jobs. When being fit and healthy and looking as good as possible is part of your job, it really makes you think about what you are putting into your body. Plus kids, as anyone with them will know, add a whole new dimension to your life. I was experiencing tiredness that I never knew existed and so I decided to try to combat this by incorporating as many nutritious foods into my diet as possible. I found juicing to be a brilliant way to achieve this.

GET YOUR 5-A-DAY IN A GLASS

I believe there is no better way to load up on vitamins and enzymes than having a glass of green juice. At Juiceman, we can get 2 kilograms of veg into a 500ml bottle of juice. Imagine eating through 2 kilograms of veg on your plate! As for smoothies, they are my meal in a glass because my nutritional needs can be met in an instant. If Im home late or I need a quick fix, I will always make a green smoothie.

Fruit and vegetables are simply amazing. The amount of vitamins and enzymes that they contain is unreal. When Jane and I moved back to London, one of the best things I did was plant my own veg patch I couldnt believe how much I could grow in such a small area.

Im a firm believer in the fresher the better. The difference between an apple picked from the tree to one from the supermarket is huge. To harness that freshness, or get as close to it as possible, was my ultimate goal. And by juicing the freshest produce, all the vitamins, enzymes and minerals can be in your system in an instant.

I started to share my enthusiasm for juices, smoothies and raw food with my family and friends. I became known as The Juiceman as I did home deliveries like a local milkman! As demand grew, my cold-pressed juice company was born.

LIFE. LONG.

My handprint is the logo used on all of our products and it symbolises the journey from seed to bottle. It emphasises my original vision to create an ethical and sustainable juice business and you will also see it used throughout this book to flag up my absolute favourite recipes (see ).

Unfortunately, were now a society obsessed with fad diets and losing weight when what we really should be focusing on is our health. If we were all healthy, we wouldnt need to diet! The phrase Life. Long. used on Juiceman products sums up the Juiceman ethos: our wish for health and longevity. We believe that a nutritious diet can go a long way and its our aim to make this a sustainable lifelong habit that is easy, fun and enjoyable.

And now I want to share my passion and lifestyle with you, and to show that its easy to create great-tasting and nutritious food and drinks at home.

This book can help you to:

increase your energy levels

get clearer skin

reduce your cholesterol

build stronger, healthier bones

boost your immune system

eliminate sugar and caffeine cravings

get better-quality sleep

improve recovery from exercise

improve productivity

JUICE KIDS

A huge reason for starting Juiceman was my mission to get kids to enjoy nutritious juices and smoothies and to stop consuming so many processed foods and fizzy drinks. My own kids love the recipes in this book. Of course there are times when they will want candyfloss over a fresh organic apple and carrot juice they are kids after all! But its about finding a balance. There are lots of fun ways to integrate healthy food and drink recipes into their lives such as smoothie bowls, ice lollies, ice cream and flavoured ice cubes. Like any Dad, Ive had to be inventive with ways of getting them to eat the good stuff. Get your kids experimenting. My little guy Jackson loves making smoothies and juices with me most mornings he is chief juicer in our house.