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MICROWAVABLE ORGANIC KIDS’ LUNCH NOW AVAILABLE IN STORES
A fresh idea and a fresh lunch
For close to a year, Organic Fresh Fingers, Inc. has supplied fresh organic lunches to Willamette Valley pre-schools and daycare centers – providing the way to a healthy lifestyle to children at a young age. The meals are vegetarian and where possible, local produce and products are used.
As of March 12th trend setting moms can say no to French fries and will be able to grab an organic lunch right out of the freezer, thanks to Evann Remington, CEO of Organic Fresh Fingers. Taste buds don’t lie, and when a toddler asks for seconds, that is news that parents like to hear. Oh, and when this same finicky toddler doesn’t finish lunch – the resealable package avoids waste.
Demand from schools grew, rapidly. Director, Moureene Taylor of Little Cottage pre-school in Beaverton says, “Most kids are so used to McDonald’s and fast food these days, I wasn’t so sure about how our kids would respond to hummus pizza.” Taylor said. “The kids love it, I love it and the parents love it. It’s so convenient and cost effective and the kids really enjoy it.”
It’s this demand that led Organic Fresh Fingers to offer retail products so Moms could also have the convenience at home.
Roth/Salem, Market of Choice/eight locations, Food Front/Portland, Peoples Food/Portland, Alberta Cooperative/Portland and Lifesource Natural Foods/Salem will have stocked their freezers with tasty, easy, healthy lunches for kids. The microwavable lunches are distributed to these stores by North West Natural Foods.
All entrees and snacks created at Organic Fresh Fingers meet with the child nutrition guidelines of completely balanced and wholesome meals specifically designed for young children. Organic Fresh Fingers’ products are USDA certified Organic. The USDA certification labeling means that all their ingredients are organic. The meals are fresh vegetarian (where possible, local), are certified organic by the Oregon Tilth and Organic Fresh Fingers is an Oregon Department of Agriculture Licensed Processor. Nutritional Analysis has been provided by Nutridata Inc. whose analysis results and labels are 100% FDA compliant.
Contact: Laine Latimer, 503-859-2299 or laine@latimergroup.com
THE FIRST YEAR IN BUSINESS – FOUR LESSONS LEARNED
“I am going to make fresh, organic food for kids. It will be fun.” Little did I know that what I was actually saying was “I am going to enter into the food manufacturing industry with no experience". The business was actually launched in early 2007 producing organic meals for children in Salem, Oregon. A reflection on my first year has yielded four lessons learned.
Lesson 1: In hindsight I believe that very naiveté is what carried my company through those first few months. I had no idea that what I set out to do is nearly impossible, which made my grand visions attainable. However, I have not been able to do it on my own. The key principle, I believe, is to surround oneself with exceptional and experienced people. Not necessarily your friends, but trusted people who you know to have different skill sets than your own — people who will “tell you as it is.” Finding said people is not an easy task. One thing I was told early on from an investor is that he was not investing in my product or company, he was investing in me. You attract talented people by selling yourself as an entrepreneur first and selling the actual business concept second. Dealing with rejection is just part of the game in these early stages. You must be able to put yourself out there by picking up the telephone and participating in any event you can find to sell yourself. Eventually, if you are interesting, passionate and simply a person people want to be around, the talented people will come.
Lesson 2: The drive that exists in an entrepreneur is what keeps you working when everyone else has gone home and refuses to take no for an answer. This is the force behind a brand-new company and the sole reason an idea is transformed into a passion. However, this same entrepreneur must recognize when to shift roles from the excited driving force to the reserved strategic planner and leader. I have found this transformation to be critical as someone must be looking at the big picture. As a company grows and begins to gain momentum, somebody must be “steering the ship.”
Lesson 3: Cash is king. If you are out of cash, you are out of business. We hear about it all the time, but how true it is. As new businesses we must find new and sometimes creative ways to preserve our working capital.
Lesson 4: People talk and write often about time management. But when you are the president of a company, especially a new company, you must be spending time, effort and resources on activities that are immediately relevant, necessary and profitable. My personality tends to be people pleasing and polite. I am happy to speak with anyone who shares my passion for organic foods, healthy eating for kids and sustainable practices to save our planet. Although this all makes for great and inspiring conversation, it is not always the best use of resources.
The four lessons I learned are people, leadership, cash flow and resource management when starting a company. However, I believe the real challenge is constant improvement and always being willing to learn new lessons. Our job as business leaders in a company is never complete. This is what makes life as an entrepreneur so challenging and so rewarding.
“Evann Remington of Salem, Oregon is Founder and President Organic Fresh Fingers, Inc., a company that produces certified organic meals for kids. O.F.F. manufactures meals for private schools and the retail market.”
PORTLAND AREA PRE SCHOOLS AND DAY CARE CENTERS ARE SERVING ORGANIC LUNCHES
Portland Community College, Child Development Center has gone Organic. P.C.C. and other childcare centers have made the bold leap to serve fresh, organic lunches and snacks to help train a childs’ taste buds to learn how good healthy can taste. “We are bringing new tastes to children,” said Deborah Sipe, director of the Child Development Center at P.C.C . “That is a real plus in my mind. We are exposing young children to different taste sensations that are healthy.”
The Salem based company, Organic Fresh Fingers, Inc. delivers the pre-made meals to the schools along the 1-5 corridor. This saves director Moureene Taylor of Little Cottage Daycare in Beaverton both time and money. “Most kids are so used to McDonald’s and fast food these days, I wasn’t so sure about how our kids would respond to hummus pizza.” Taylor said. “The kids love it, I love it and the parents love it. And it’s so convenient and cost effective.”
Organic Fresh Fingers is a brand new company that in a year’s time has branched out to Portland area schools, and is changing the way kids eat while away from home. Trendsetting moms are concerned about what their children are eating while not at home, and that has become a criteria for choosing a facility.
All entrees and snacks created at Organic Fresh Fingers meet with the child nutrition guidelines of completely balanced and wholesome meals specifically designed for young children. The meals are fresh vegetarian (where possible, local), are certified organic by the Oregon Tilth, are USDA certified and Organic Fresh Fingers is an Oregon Department of Agriculture Licensed Processor. Nutritional Analysis has been provided by Nutridata Inc. whose analysis results and labels are 100% FDA compliant.
As of March 14th, these healthy, delicious meals can also be found on grocers freezer shelves.
Contact: Jodi Kerr (503)743-2346 Jodikerr@meritel.net
GROWING ORGANIC, GROWING CHILDREN, AND GROWING BUSINESS IN OREGON
By: Jodi Kerr For the Capital Press
When Evann Remington went to find suitable daycare for her two-year-old daughter, a safe and clean facility that served healthy organic lunches and snacks topped the wants list. The options for safe and clean were plentiful but the non-existent organic nutrition at daycare and schools was a problem that morphed into a catalyst for a growing business.
Instead of settling for non-organic faire, she founded the company Organic Fresh Fingers, Inc., and began supplying Portland, Beaverton, and Salem, Oregon preschools with fresh prepared lunches and snacks made of local foods.
“I am not messing around,” she said. “I wanted to grow rapidly and do it right,” said Remington, CEO of Organic Fresh Fingers, based in Salem, Oregon. The start-up company started with one daycare facility and has grown to fourteen.
For organic foods farmers, the more organic food manufactures that come on board, the better that is for the business of organic farming. “Oregon farmers have had to step up production because of the sustainability of food in the local area,” said Tim Wood, product placement manager at Northwest Natural Foods, LLC, in Eugene, Oregon. “We distribute organic foods and we have grown by leaps and bounds,” Wood said. “I joined the company in 2006, we had five Oregon manufactures, and we had six routes. Now in 2008, we have 16 manufactures that we distribute for and we have 21 routes.”
Growth is showing no signs of stopping. “We have six to eight inquires a week from Oregon start-ups,” Woods said. Companies are looking for ways to get organic products mainstreamed and on to grocery store shelves.
Delivering fresh meals to daycare is a start, but Organic Fresh Fingers will be rolling out the frozen organic lunch line-up in local grocery stores and co-ops in March. “It is an organic frozen meal,” said Wood. “Remington’s product meets all the USDA Child and Adult Food Program Standards for nutrition and is different than other processed snack type foods in the non organic market.”
Daycare teachers and employees have upped the orders to include a lunch for themselves and their classes. Sure the smiley face hummus pizza is geared towards children, but there is no reason an adult can’t appreciate a healthy organic convenient meal grown in the Northwest. “We have the ‘Organic Spaghetti with Lentils’, ‘ Organic Hummus Pizza’, and ‘Organic Quiche’ to name a few. We offer vegan, vegetarian and wheat free options so there should be something for everyone,” Remington said. Suggested retail is about $5.00 and will give parents an option for schools that do not serve organic and vegetarian foods.
Demand has grown for organic foods and the cost difference between organic and non-organic are beginning to even out, according to Wood. “Organic foods are more available and the demographics and demand are changing,” said Wood.
Since Organic Fresh Fingers meals are geared towards children, they have to taste good. Moureene (Spelling ok) Taylor of Little Cottage Preschool in Beaverton, Oregon, knows that the taste bud of a child is a tough customer. “Most kids are so used to McDonald’s and fast food these days, I wasn’t so sure about how our kids would respond to hummus pizza,” Taylor said. “The kids love it, I love it, and the parents love it. It’s so convenient and cost effective and the kids really enjoy it.”
Organic manufacturing and farmers are growing side-by-side and both are becoming more diversified and product specific. “Customers are looking for products that are local,” Wood said. In Organic Fresh Fingers’ case, every meal served came from within a day’s drive of Salem. “Customers want to know where there food comes from,” he said. “Customers are concerned about their carbon footprint and how many miles food travels before it hits their table.”
As Organic Fresh Fingers catches on and goes mainstream, Remington is thinking ahead and reaching out for the next part of her business plan. “My long term goal is to continue to grow my company,” Remington said. “I want to set up national distribution for retail and franchise the wholesale side of the business so I can offer an opportunity to others who want to own a business, service schools, and deliver organic local meals in their area.”
ORGANIC FRESH FINGERS, INC. SCORES BIG WITH HIRING OF EXECUTIVE CHEF KURT LUCAS
Salem, OR…Organic Fresh Fingers, Inc. a one year old Salem based company has hired Executive Chef, Kurt Lucas. Lucas, formerly the Executive Chef for Oregon State University for the past 10 years, will oversee Product Development and Production Management for Organic Fresh Fingers.
Organic Fresh Fingers provides organic, healthy lunches and snacks to schools and day-care facilities in the Northwest. “Because of our rapid growth, we needed to find someone the caliber of Kurt to help us keep up with our growth”, says Evann Remington, Organic Fresh Fingers CEO.
Lucas attended Western Culinary Institute and interned at Los Angeles’ Citrus, under famed chef Michel Richard. After the internship, Kurt worked at various restaurants in the Salem, OR area. Two of the most notable were 2 years as sous chef at Morton’s Bistro NW and 3 years at Lifesource Natural Foods. Lifesource was where he learned about and cooked with all natural and organic foods.
At OSU, Lucas operated 7 restaurants serving over 3,000 meals a day. His responsibility included creating the menus, handling product orders, employee training, and just about everything else that it takes to run 7 restaurants profitably. The local health department had used his restaurants to show others the proper way of food handling. As Vice President of Product Development for Organic Fresh Fingers, Inc., his extensive culinary knowledge and love of fresh, organic ingredients will add to the current line of high quality, nutritionally balanced meals.
All entrees and snacks created at Organic Fresh Fingers meet with the child nutrition guidelines of completely balanced and wholesome meals specifically designed for young children. The meals are fresh vegetarian (where possible, local), are certified organic by the Oregon Tilth and Organic Fresh Fingers is a Oregon Department of Agriculture Licensed Processor.
A study conducted by the Department of Environmental Health, School of Public Health and Community Medicine at the University of Washington shows that children who eat primarily organic foods are exposed to fewer pesticides than children who eat conventional foods. High doses of pesticides can cause neurological or reproductive damage.
“Many daycare centers and preschools in Salem think that organic meals are more expensive and dismiss the possibility out of hand. I can disprove that myth. Some of our customers meet the eligibility requirements under the USDA Adult and Child Food program. Consequently, some low-income kids are receiving highly nutritious food and I love that,” said Remington.
Customer Sue Miller, the executive director of Family Building Blocks is “proud to serve high-caliber nutritious foods. In addition to nutritious meals, the convenience of delivery and bulk pricing were key elements in our decision to try Organic Fresh Fingers.”
Another aspect, “Our lunches and snacks remind kids of their already favorite foods with one exception, we take out all the bad stuff and replace it with organic fruits, veggies and whole grains. Kurt and I know that fun healthy foods do not have to be tasteless. We offer exciting meals that have received rave reviews from some of the most finicky food critics…Kids!” says Remington.
Contact: Laine Latimer, 503-859-2299 or laine@latimergrou.com
MANAGEMENT TEAM BIOS
Evann Remington – Founder & President: Ms. Remington founded her last business venture, Strategic Growth Partners, Inc., a financial event planning business in 2005. Ms. Remington started her career working for the Department of Justice in Attorney General Hardy’s Meyer’s office. Ms. Remington has worked as a paralegal and lobbyist in the State of Oregon as well as administrator for the Oregon Association for Home Care and the Oregon Cable and Telecommunications Association. As an association manager, Ms. Remington was responsible for all aspects of marketing, event planning, bookkeeping and human resource management. Evann Remington has savvy business and communications skills as well as competency managing business assets.
MC Bickert – Vice President: An experienced business executive. 30 years with ITT Corp. in marketing, product development, Unit President and 15 years as turnaround specialist. Founded two successful retail businesses and on the founding Board of 4 commercial enterprises. Mr. Bickert was President of Marquis Corp for 5 years and a Counselor for SCORE (SBA) for 9 years.
Kurt Lucas – Product Development & Production Manager: A culinary marvel. After graduating with honors from Western Culinary Institute, Kurt completed an internship in Los Angeles at Citrus under famed chef Michel Richard. Following the internship, Kurt worked at various restaurants in the Salem, OR area. Two of the most notable were 2 years as sous chef at Morton’s Bistro NW and 3 years at Lifesource Natural Foods. Lifesource was where Kurt learned about and cooked with all natural and organic foods. He has opened or assisted in opening several restaurants since then.
As the Executive Chef for Oregon State University for the past 10 years, he operated 7 restaurants serving over 3,000 meals each day. He was responsible for all of the menus, the product ordering, employee training, and just about everything else that it takes to run 7 restaurants profitably. His local health department used these restaurants to show others the proper way of food handling; something that Kurt is very proud of. Kurt is now Vice President of Product Development for Organic Fresh Fingers, Inc. He uses his extensive culinary knowledge and love of fresh, organic ingredients to produce high quality, nutritionally balanced meals for kids.
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