Become a Creator today!Start creating today - Share your story with the world!
Start for free
00:00:00
00:00:01
Oren Epstein | Bio Raw
77 Plays8 months ago
Eating healthy at home is one thing but what about when we’re at the office, or on-the-go? When we make quick food, healthy food, good things happen.
This conversation is with Oren Epstein from Bio Raw—a B Corp certified, allergen-free, plant-based, certified organic ready-to-eat, meals and snacks service. Bio Raw aims to transform lives, the planet and the food industry — one radically good meal bowl, bio-bite, dressing and snack at a time.
To learn more go to https://www.bioraw.ca.
To learn about how Ethical Food Group is playing its part to fix the broken food system visit https://www.ethicalfoodgroup.com.
Here’s the highlights from this interview:
Bio Raw's Vision and Products:
Oren talks about the ideal future grocery store, emphasizing the importance of integrity, local sourcing, and avoiding harmful ingredients. Bio Raw creates organic, gluten-free, and nut-free convenience foods like pre-packaged meals, power puddings, high-protein bites, and salad dressings. Their products are designed to be healthy, delicious, and suitable for various dietary preferences.
Sustainability and Ethical Business Practices:
Epstein highlights Bio Raw's commitment to sustainability, including their use of plant-based packaging and efforts towards a zero-waste certification. He also discusses the significance of Bio Raw's B Corp certification, which verifies their dedication to social and environmental standards.
Challenges and Consumer Education:
Expanding the business and educating consumers about healthy choices and the pitfalls of the food industry are ongoing challenges. Epstein emphasizes the importance of educating customers on why Bio Raw's products are superior, focusing on the use of whole food ingredients and avoiding processed oils and allergens.
Allergen-Free and Safe Foods:
Bio Raw's commitment to offering gluten-free and nut-free options is driven by a desire to serve those with dietary restrictions safely. They go the extra mile by batch testing their products to ensure they meet these standards, providing peace of mind for consumers with allergies.
Future Goals and Expansion:
Epstein expresses a desire to expand Bio Raw's reach, making their products available in more locations to meet the demand for healthy, convenient, and allergen-free foods. He mentions the importance of supporting retailers and educating consumers to grow the brand.
Recommended
Transcript
Introduction to Healthy Eating Discussion
00:00:00
Speaker
This is aisle 42. Eating healthy at home is one thing, but what about when we're at the office or on the go? When we make quick food, healthy food, good things happen.
Meet Oren Epstein from BioRa
00:00:16
Speaker
This conversation is with Orn Epstein from BioRa, a B Corp certified, allergen free, plant-based certified, organic, ready to eat meals and snack service.
00:00:26
Speaker
BioRa aims to transform lives, the planet, and the food industry, one radically good mealable, bio-bite, dressing, and snack at a time. You're going to love listening into this one, so let's jump
Vision for Ethical Grocery Shopping
00:00:38
Speaker
in. Here's Oren Epstein from BioRa. Oren, thanks so much for doing this. Everything that you're doing at BioRa is fantastic. I tried your food products when I was in Toronto recently for a food industry event.
00:00:53
Speaker
And it's really got my attention. Before we get into all the amazing organic products you make and your B Corp certification and all these things, I have a kickoff question for you. If you were to imagine the perfect grocery store of the future, what would it look like?
00:01:11
Speaker
Totally. I love that question and I'm so honored that I was able to nourish you while you were here in Toronto. Perfect grocery store of the future. Definitely a grocery store that is rooted in giving people exactly what they want. We all want to be eating healthy and we all want to be eating really well. And there's a lot of really great stores out there, but I find that not enough of them are really creating a mandate that they stand behind.
00:01:34
Speaker
A grocery store that would be from heaven would be one with a buyer that really cares about with sourcing and ensuring that the products on the shelf are as healthy as they claim to
Importance of Sourcing Local and Organic Foods
00:01:44
Speaker
be. I find our industry is unfortunately littered with a lot of greenwashing and a lot of highly inflammatory oils.
00:01:51
Speaker
I think first and foremost, having a strong mandate and perimeters in place to make sure that customers don't even have the opportunity to purchase something that's made with highly inflammatory ingredients, that aren't made with mystery flavors and natural flavors and products that are rooted in integrity, that are not just good for you, but good for the planet.
00:02:11
Speaker
We should really be focusing on eating produce that's local and in season and eating food that is helping our environment and helping the soil and no supporting the little guys. It's really easy to choose a really big manufacturer or a really big distributor if you're a retailer, but taking that extra time to really do your due diligence on the products.
00:02:33
Speaker
There are some great buyers out there, but yeah, grocery store of the future, all organic, all organic prepared foods.
Being an Informed Shopper
00:02:40
Speaker
And I'm really grateful we do have some retailers like that already in Toronto and in North America.
00:02:46
Speaker
That's great. Yeah, the larger city centers, there's a bit more demand for that type of thing. As soon as you get further out into the smaller suburbs or towns where it's really hard for people to find retailers and grocery stores that are as committed to organic and natural and local as much as we see in the big centers.
00:03:05
Speaker
Definitely. There's a lot of buzzwords in food that companies have really marketed against. And it's really taking the time to educate yourself as an informed shopper to really understand what you're putting into your body. Unfortunately, our food systems are really broken right now. Our soil is depleted. And even the healthy food can be contaminated, laced with heavy metals, sprayed with toxic ingredients, or just packaged in something that's leaching into something that's really good.
00:03:34
Speaker
So I really try to focus on being in on empathy economics when I go grocery shopping and really questioning everything.
BioRa's Product Range and Standards
00:03:42
Speaker
Empathy economics. That's, that's a new one. Good one. I like it. So give us the rundown on bio raw. What do you guys make? What's your favorite product that you make?
00:03:51
Speaker
Totally so file raw makes a line of fat fresh convenience foods that are all certified organic gluten free and not free we pride ourselves on making really good food that everyone can enjoy regardless of their dietary restrictions preferences for people looking to eat really good food.
00:04:10
Speaker
We are known for our line of pre-packaged organic meals that are high protein, high fiber, and absolutely delicious. We also make a line of delicious power puddings that are infused with an adaptogenic granola. Did you just say power puddings? Oh yeah, they're so good. Seven to 14 grams of plant-based protein that's easy to digest. We also recently launched our line of biobites, which are high protein satiating bites that are savory, made from plants, not sugar.
00:04:37
Speaker
Really great way to get more protein and good healthy fats into your diet every day. And what I'm really, really excited about is our brand new line of salad dressings. Everyone loves the dressings and marinades that we use in our meals. And I'm really excited to have our new dressings and glass bottles being available on the shelf.
00:04:55
Speaker
Everything that we do at Biarock is rooted in trying to be of service to the community. One thing that's really important to me is knowing that we have a fresh organic option out there for customers to purchase that are looking for good food. I know that if I didn't exist here in my market, there wouldn't be an organic
00:05:12
Speaker
offering to customers that has made a dedicated gluten-free and nut-free facility made without preservatives and without cutting corners. But yeah, our dressings are amazing. They're hitting the shelves as we speak. They're in glass bottles made from cold press, extra virgin olive oil, raw apple cider vinegar. And instead of using inflammatory ingredients like dairy, we get really rich creamy flavor from using super foods.
00:05:38
Speaker
like hemp and sesame. We go beyond in every way that we can. Even all the water that we use to make the dressings and to make or power our power puddings is made with using filtered water. So we are a brand that customers can trust and know that it's just as good, if not better than something coming out of your own kitchen. We've done all the thinking, all the cooking, all the cleaning. All you have to do as a consumer is pick us up and enjoy.
Accessibility and Availability of BioRa Products
00:06:04
Speaker
I love it. I know you're in some grocery stores in the Toronto area, but you also have a home delivery option. And you know, when I think about the times, all the times I've gone to my skip the dishes app or whatever, whatever meal service app that I'm currently on, cause I have a few on my phone, like all of us, then the options just seem to get more and more like deep fried this and greasy that, and it can be hard, especially where
00:06:29
Speaker
you want something healthy and organic, but you want it to be like savory and like you want it to be a real meal, not just sort of like a side dish or it's like, Oh, I know I've got to augment this meal with some other proteins or some other, you know, fiber things. It's a, I love the way you're offering really leans into that delivery consumer as well. Someone that just needs something brought to them because they're at work or home and they still need something on the go, even though they might not be going somewhere.
00:06:57
Speaker
Definitely. I've done a lot of product research and I've spent a ton of time talking to my customers and getting feedback. And from the great conversations we have, you know, Bio Raw is really there for customers in their time of need, whether it's, you know, making sure that their fridge is stocked at home with fresh meals delivered right to their door made just for them.
00:07:16
Speaker
or being available in major grocery stores like Loblaws or Whole Foods, Fortunos, and all the other great stores here in and around the city of Toronto. We really, really pride ourselves on being that healthy meal. What I hear a lot from our customers is like, we're that healthy check mark that you're getting all the veggies in, like similar to like an AG1 or like a greens powder that people feel good taking first thing in the morning, that's knocking off that they're eating good food. Our product is really used as that kind of tool.
00:07:44
Speaker
We really, really work hard to create offerings that bring in a plethora of species from the plants kingdom that is really nutrient dense and really delicious. You won't find any iceberg lettuce in our products or rice, but what you will find are rainbow carrots, nutrient rich collard greens, bok choy, and lots of super foods. I always say the backbone of our meals are microgreens.
BioRa's Commitment to Sustainability
00:08:10
Speaker
They're such a great nutrient dense powerhouse.
00:08:13
Speaker
That's so great. Now, you're B Corp certified. Walk us through what that meant to you and your team to acquire that, what it means to keep it. And why should your consumers give a flying rat's ass about your B Corp certification?
00:08:28
Speaker
I actually launched BioRa all around our B Corp certification. B Corp certification is a third party audit that's done by the B Corp gods. And it essentially is auditing your business on a number of different aspects, community, corporate governance, how you treat the environment and local. It's kind of a really good stamp of approval that says,
00:08:52
Speaker
You know, when brands say, oh, we give back to the community or oh, we support local or oh, we staff locally or everything is local. It's a certification that I as a company have volunteered, raised my hand to put my entire business on the table and be audited by B Corp to say and prove that I am in fact
00:09:14
Speaker
using my dollar as a company to support local communities, pay my staff fairly, source locally when I can, and am I in fact giving back into the communities that are servicing me? It goes into a number of different really small minutias of your business to really prove that as a business, we walk the walk and talk the talk.
00:09:35
Speaker
Right now, it's really easy to... I was just scrolling through Instagram right before I go on this call today, and I saw a brand that's coming to market, and their whole marketing pitch is that it's local. And it's the winter here, nine months of the year.
00:09:52
Speaker
And for this brand to be claiming that they're local, knowing that they're suppliers and stuff like that, I know that it's not local and it's kind of deceiving. So I always look for that B Corp certification when I'm looking to support brands because I know that they've put themselves on the line. They're making themselves transparent and they're proving that they are in fact doing the great things that they have set out and claimed to do. So I really like it as a consumer to know which brands are actually doing the good work and are saying, Hey,
00:10:22
Speaker
Let me prove it to you and I have nothing to hide as an organization. Love it. So good. Talk to us about packaging and the, you know, you've got a single serve packaging items. I mean, for on the go eating and for delivery, it's just, it's a necessary evil. Where are you guys at with packaging right now? And where would you like to see it down the road?
00:10:43
Speaker
For sure. So right now we're using the most advanced packaging that we can find that's available in the market. The packaging that we use is made from plants, not petroleum. We've worked very hard to minimize our plastic and all aspects of our packaging. So it is a plastic free packaging made from plant material. When I first started Bio Raw, we were still using those containers.
00:11:07
Speaker
The same containers that our meals are in now, but we were actually putting on a sticker on top of all of our bowls instead of the cardboard belly band that is currently on our product. In our efforts to work towards our zero waste certification at our facility, we took away that plastic and we feel so good to have a product on the market that is made using the most in packaged, using the most advanced packaging available.
00:11:32
Speaker
We all know that every piece of plastic that's ever been created still exists today. And as a food manufacturer, I feel it my responsibility to make sure that I'm putting out products that's packaged in the most sustainable packaging that I can find while maintaining the integrity of our product and the shelf life and knowing that we are supporting even our packaging manufacturers that are doing good work as well.
Growth Challenges and Consumer Education
00:11:56
Speaker
But I got to say, how come you're not in every city?
00:11:59
Speaker
I'm so I'm so grumpy that I can't find you at my local store. So what's it been like to grow the business to attract consumers and grocery shoppers to this type of eating this format? What are some of the challenges you guys are facing as you try to take over the world with organic ready to go food?
00:12:19
Speaker
Building a brand that's rooted in integrity and without cutting corners isn't always easy, but I've always been committed and have been unwavering in my commitments and the things that I stand behind. It's so important to me that a customer can feel safe and know that they're getting good access to clean food, actual clean food. And we have worked very hard to align ourselves with suppliers that meet our high standards of quality and integrity.
00:12:46
Speaker
Having a fresh product, our products are fresh for seven days. And it's so important to us that our customers, whether they're enjoying it on day one or day seven, that they always have the freshest experience possible. We've worked very hard to create a supply chain and work with our retail customers to minimize the amount of food waste that we're producing by getting orders ahead of time.
00:13:09
Speaker
and having exactly what we need in stock and processed so that nothing ever ends up in the landfills. On a retail side of things, we've worked incredibly hard to prove our existence on the grocery store shelf. I've never sold on consignment or guaranteed sales, so that means I've never just given product to a grocery store and said, if it doesn't sell, that's on me. I've always worked incredibly hard to support our grocery stores and create a space for us in the store.
00:13:38
Speaker
and making sure that our product is selling the moment it hits the shelf. I don't want to be creating products that are just ending up in the landfill and creating more waste in this already so wasteful and destructive industry. We work really hard to support our retailers through in-store product samplings, having a strong social media presence,
00:13:58
Speaker
When I first launched the brand, I actually did over 300 days of events. So I was at every single yoga show. There was every green living show, health-focused events. I was popping up in fitness studios and yoga studios and gyms anywhere I could to make sure that people knew that our product was available and then supporting the traffic into our retailers. I love standing in stores and talking to customers and giving them the opportunity to try our product.
00:14:27
Speaker
prior to launching BioRa and to my life even before that. I actually, when I was 19 years old, I was a marketing associate over at Simply Protein. And at the time, Susie York from, that we all love and I think was just on an episode, a few episodes back, was like a marketing consultant over at Simply Protein. And I was young, I was 19, I was like, there's so many events, we need to be at all of them.
00:14:56
Speaker
and she really taught me about the importance of trial, trial, trial. Get everyone to try your product, fall in love with it, and make sure that there's a good call to action for that customer. So I've always brought that into everything that I do and the more people that I can nourish and get them to try our product and fall in love with what we're doing and explain to them why we're better than the products on the shelf has been so important to me.
00:15:21
Speaker
you know there's a lot of education and what i do i know it's so simple they're just the plant based meals their salads essentially but it's so important to me to educate our customers on to ask why we're choosing ingredients or why we're doing things the way that we're doing them.
00:15:36
Speaker
Often, if we're available in grocery stores, we're the only product on the shelf that is made using a dressing that doesn't involve highly inflammatory oils like canola, soy oil, or just plain vegetable oil.
00:15:51
Speaker
And unfortunately, not enough people understand or educated in the fact that a lot of those highly processed oils were never meant for human consumption and are wreaking havoc on our bodies. So I feel so privileged to be able to educate customers when we're in stores, through our social media programming, through our email
BioRa's Allergen-Free Commitment
00:16:10
Speaker
marketing.
00:16:10
Speaker
anyway that we can to spread the good word and to prove to customers and to prove to retailers as to why it is so important that Byara has a place on the shelf in their basket and on their fork.
00:16:23
Speaker
Well said. One of the things I noticed about your product when I had it was the call outs around allergen, nut free, gluten free, keto, paleo approved, those things, those things, they're not important to me. I'm able to sort of look at that and go, Oh, well, that's nice. It doesn't, it doesn't affect me. I want it for, I want to consume this for other reasons, but there are plenty of people where that's what they're looking for. They're looking and you even said it.
00:16:50
Speaker
They're looking for something that's safe for them to consume and something that's really, really enjoyable. What do you hear from the allergen community, the people on the side of the equation where these decisions are on what they're putting in their body is really, really important to them? What's been the feedback for BioRa in that case?
00:17:08
Speaker
This goes back to me having a business rooted in integrity and being of service to my community. I know when I started the brand at first, I would spend so much time at grocery stores chatting with customers. And I'd hear from a lot of parents with children that suffer from net allergies that the only food that they feel safe feeding their children when they're outside of the home was McDonald's.
00:17:29
Speaker
I think that's changed now a little bit. I think they have peanuts on their Sundays, but for the longest time, if you had a nut allergy and you're trying to feed your kid something that they can eat outside the home, they'd be stuck with something like McDonald's, which is crazy to me, especially the gluten-sensitive community, those that suffer from clones and colitis. Not enough people understand, there aren't enough kitchens, I should say, understand that there's cross-contamination that can occur. And even though a product may not have gluten in it,
00:17:59
Speaker
the products might come into contact with surfaces utensils things that may contain gluten or nuts that would caught wreak havoc on you know someone's body. I buy a rock we work very closely with third party labs to batch tester products to prove that is in fact gluten free and not free.
00:18:18
Speaker
We have our own private facility and we have never allowed gluten or nuts into our facility, but it's not just enough for me to make that claim. I want to make sure that I have the third party lab tests to support it and to prove that I can stand behind that and I've made an investment into the health of our customers.
00:18:37
Speaker
So good. It's so important. And for those that don't struggle with allergies, it can be sort of like, ah, they don't really understand it or really give it much attention. But for those that do it in some ways, it can feel like a game changer when they get access to good, healthy food that gives them energy and also food can be medicine. And when they get that into their meal routine, it's really a beautiful thing.
00:19:02
Speaker
And I often heard that for those who suffer from gluten sensitivities or not allergies, that the safest thing that they can enjoy off the shelf is a protein bar or some other processed food. Those definitely have a place, but we shouldn't be eating processed foods all the time.
00:19:19
Speaker
If I'm hungry and I'm visiting a grocery store and all my friends are able to grab a meal or grab a sandwich or grab something, I feel left out because I'm in a pinch and I got to grab a protein bar or I got to grab a banana. I want real nourishing food. So I feel so grateful that I'm able to nourish people with really good, real food.
Expansion Plans for BioRa
00:19:40
Speaker
Just because we're gluten-free doesn't mean we've removed anything or that we're using alternatives in our products We just choose to use whole food plant-based ingredients that are inherently gluten-free So you won't find any weird starches or fillers or gums or anything like that in any of our products we're using real whole food ingredients as nature intended it to be and Just infusing it with lots of love and flavor to create high protein nutrient dense meals and offerings
00:20:10
Speaker
Brilliant. You should go on tour. You should do a Canadian tour in every city. Just rock these events and put BioRa on every grocery store across Canada and the US. Let's do it. Let's go. I'd love that. So good. Thanks for doing this. I know people can... It's BioRa.ca. That's where people can learn more, right?
00:20:30
Speaker
Yeah, head over to bio.ca. And in fact, if you are an aisle 42 listener, you can use the code aisle42 at checkout, and it'll take 15% off your order or your new subscription order. So I hope you take advantage of that. I love it. That's the first discount code someone's offered up an aisle 42 discount code. You said 15%, right?
00:20:53
Speaker
Yeah, you're awesome listeners. We got 15% off their order. And yeah, we can't wait to nourish you. So good. Thanks for doing this, Oren. Have a great day. Thanks for having me. Thanks for listening to aisle 42. I hope you're as inspired as I am by all the organic mojo in this one. If you're in the Toronto area, please visit your local grocery store or go to BioRa.ca. You'll love it.
00:21:19
Speaker
And for those of us who live elsewhere, I guess we'll just have to wait our turn. That's it for me. I'm Corwin Hebert from Ethical Food Group, and I'll see you in the future.