Social entrepreneur Gavin Armstrong is the founder of Lucky Iron Fish, a social business and B-Corp aiming to combat iron deficiency. Nearly 3.5 billion people around the world suffer from iron deficiency or anemia, resulting in constant fatigue, dizziness, and difficulty concentrating at school or at work. The Iron Lucky Fish is a piece of iron cast in the shape of a fish. When boiled with food or broth, it releases enough iron to provide up to 90% of the daily necessary intake. Turning this simple idea into reality was no easy task. Gavin started the B-Corp in Cambodia while simultaneously pursuing a PhD. He went for years without a salary. He made mistake after mistake and things didn't work out as planned. Yet Gavin kept tinkering and iterating. The Lucky Iron Fish is a global phenomena now. Gavin was recently named in the Forbes 30 Under 30 List for social entrepreneurship. Many people in the developed world also suffer from iron deficiency. You can buy a Lucky Iron Fish ($25) for yourself and the company will give one to a person in need. The Lucky Iron Fish is a great holiday gift for friends and family.   Show Links for Gavin Armstrong Conscious Capitalism: Liberating the Heroic Spirit of Business by John Mackey and Rajendra Sisodia Start With Why: How Great Leaders Inspire Everyone to Take Action by Simon Sinek Creating a World Without Poverty: Social Business and the Future of Capitalism by Muhammad Yunus Building Social Business: The New Kind of Capitalism that Serves Humanity's Most Pressing Needs by Muhammad Yunus   Show Notes for Gavin Armstrong Gavin’s experience during college volunteering at a refugee camp in Kenya made him want to fight world hunger Researcher Christopher Charles had a project called Happy Fish that sparked Gavin’s interest. The original thesis paper can be found here. Chris abandoned the research project Gavin continued Chris’s research in Cambodia Cambodia has an extremely high level of iron deficiency due to nutritional and genetic factors Iron deficiency is the world’s most common micro-nutrient challenge Half of the world’s population suffers from this preventable condition Symptoms include fatigue, dizziness, and even death Iron deficiency leads to a loss of $70 billion to the world’s GDP Women, especially, suffer from iron deficiency Iron deficiency does not discriminate between the poor and the rich Iron supplements have negative side effects and are expensive Gavin pursued a PhD in Canada revolving around this project while starting the company in Cambodia He spent many days on airplanes The lucky iron fish is a simple health innovation product You boil the piece of iron with the food for 10 minutes, which releases iron into the meal The iron is reusable for 5 years The lucky iron fish doesn’t change the food’s color or taste The product is in the shape of a fish because the fish is the symbol of luck in Cambodia The Lucky Iron Fish received $180,000 from the university to start the company “We were very lean in the beginning.” Gavin worked with a foundry in Cambodia to make cast iron material that met international specifications Gavin made sure the iron was safe, bio-available, and contaminate-free Much of the iron in Cambodia was contaminated by arsenic They made the prototypes out of wood and approach local focus groups in rural communities to get their feedback Rapid prototyping was key Gavin went to all the focus group meetings He observed people’s facial expressions The fish’s surface area was important to be able to release the right quantity of iron per use The Cambodians called the prototype models the “Heavy Black Fish” Gavin wanted to brand the product better so he stamped the front of the face with the Cambodian symbol that means “good” and people began calling it the “Good Fish” The