Farmented Foods uses imperfect and excess produce from local farmers to create sustainable, gut-healthy fermented food products sold direct-to-consumer and via retail. The company repurposes produce that might otherwise be discarded, giving it, new life through fermentation.
And the company, which received $350,000 in total investments from gener8tor, has come a long way since its founding in 2017.
We sat down with CEO and Co-Founder Vanessa Williamson to learn more about the company’s progress.
Q&A
You told me recently you are expanding, correct?
Yeah, it has happened and it’s happening. We have gotten distribution into the Texas market. So, we’ve been getting into stores down there and then also in California. Soon, we’ll be getting into the Pacific Northwest and possibly Colorado as well. But our distribution centers haven’t been activated in those regions yet.
What is your product line?
We do sauerkraut, radish, kimchi, spicy carrots, and then some other limited products. We actually have two production facilities. We have one in Fargo, ND, but then we have a slightly larger facility in Montana, where we’re doing most of our distribution out of while we work to build out a full production facility here in Fargo. We are, as a company, making about 4,000 jars a month.
What has allowed you to grow?
We’ve definitely grown a lot over the last year. Part of that is due to investment. We were part of the gener8tor accelerator program, and they invested into our company and money definitely makes things easier. On that front, It’s allowed us to go to a lot of trade shows where we meet with buyers for the stores and the target markets that we’re aiming for. It allows us to develop relationships.
Recently, we became an approved brand for Natural Grocers. That allowed us to solidify a bigger distributor… that was really big for us.
It’s really been many factors coming together—having the right financing and then strategic partners with a brokerage account to help us with this expansion and being a Natural Grocers approved brand is huge.
Are there any new products you are working on right new?
We’ll be launching a new flavor of sauerkraut pretty soon here. Last summer, we did fermented jalapenos and we’re going to do that again. We may do fermented salsa again—that’s usually a very small batch just for farmer’s markets.
Is there anything else you want to say?
I think it’s really important to note that we’re really trying to establish our own production facility here to utilize as much local produce as possible.
I think people would e shocked to know that your school project turned into a multi-state business.
It is wild and sometimes I think about how if it wasn’t for the support of the university system, the community, and the farmers, it wouldn’t be. I had people telling me that this was actually a good idea and that I should run with it.
And here we are over seven years later.
Calling Farmers
Farmented Foods is always looking to support and source food from local growers. The main produce they are seeking includes green cabbage, daikon, radishes, and carrots. To contact them about your ugly vegetables, email them at [email protected].
What was your alternate plan? Did you have anything in mind that you were going to do differently?
I was going to go into marketing. I didn’t really have a clear idea of what I wanted to do.
Do you have any advice for our business community?
One of the things I would say is, especially if you’re in college and you’re working on small projects, think about it in a bigger picture. Think about it actually becoming a business. Don’t limit yourself to just the classroom. That’s literally how I have my career.
Another piece of advice I have for young entrepreneurs, especially female entrepreneurs, is so many people are going to try and tell you what you should do, and some of that advice could be great and should be welcomed, but some shouldn’t.
What I’ve learned is that I know our product best and I know our business best. And while it’s so important for us to be open to learning new things, if something doesn’t feel right to me, I don’t need to do it.
Do you eat your products on their own or do you include them in recipes?
I eat it with cheese, crackers, and tortilla chips, I just love it. The kimchi is my personal favorite. It’s kind of spicy and I like to use it as a hot sauce or salsa replacement. And I love cheese. I use the kimchi in the middle of my grilled cheese sandwiches. I try to eat some every day.
How to Support
farmented.com
Facebook | /farmented
Instagram | @farmentedfoods
