News Michael Kirban & Ira Liran: Coconut Water Popularizers These 40 up-and-comers—all 40 years old or younger—are changing the way Americans eat and drink, from a vodka distiller who rewrote Nebraska's Prohibition-era laws to a White House chef who's fiercely fighting to improve school-lunch programs. By Food & Wine Editors Updated on March 31, 2015 Share Tweet Pin Email Michael Kirban & Ira Liran: Coconut Water Popularizers Photo © Jordan Hollender, 2009. In the span of a few years, childhood friends Michael Kirban (photo), 35, and Ira Liran, 32, took coconut water—a super-nutritious, low-calorie drink—and turned it into Vita Coco, the biggest company in the category, with celebrity investors like Madonna. Mixologists and chefs are using it for recipes, too, expanding its popularity beyond gym-goers and yogis. Plus Go to the Vito Coco website More Inspiring Food Personalities 40 and Under Jennifer Rubell Siggi Hilmarsson Sam Kass Zach Brooks Robert Litt Brett Beach & Tim McCollum Geoff Bartakovics & Nick Fauchald Matt Timms Michael Kirban & Ira Liran Emily Olson & Rob LaFave Brendan Newman & Rico Gagliano Matthew Cain Anya Fernald Kenji Lopez-Alt Frances Ro Charles Bieler Chris Parachini & Brandon Hoy Tata Harper Annemarie Ahearn Minh Tsai Amanda Hesser Matt Jennings Alison Pincus Tracey Brandt Rob Cooper Christian Ettinger Peter Karpinski Nicolas Jammet, Nathaniel Ru & Jonathan Neman Zac Triemert Anthony Myint & Danny Bowien Jeremy Tooker Was this page helpful? Thanks for your feedback! Tell us why! Other Submit