In this conversation, Simón Sacal, CEO and co-founder of Solely, shares his journey toward building a company focused on creating healthy fruit snacks made entirely from real fruit. He explains the challenges of using real fruit in manufacturing, the importance building a reliable supply chain, and how the patented innovations that unlocked their ability to make indulgent yet nutritious products. He then shares vision for the future of the company, advice for aspiring food entrepreneurs, and how he believes that aligned incentives in the food system can lead to a better world.

Takeaways:

• Solely aims to revolutionize fruit snacks by using only real fruit.
• The evolution of fruit snacks from their original candy origin.
• Using real fruit in manufacturing presents unique challenges.
• Organic sourcing is a priority, but making indulgent yet nutritious whole food snacks is their purpose.
• Eliminating waste in the supply chain is crucial for efficiency.
• Building strong relationships with farmers is essential for success, especially when using whole, fresh ingredients.
• Innovative manufacturing processes allow for shelf-stable fruit products without preservatives.
• Future growth will focus on expanding product lines while maintaining quality.
• Aspiring entrepreneurs should ensure their product solves a real problem.
• Business must be treated as a sustainable venture, not just a passion project.

Sound bites:

• “So I have a very, very long story. I've been doing this for more than 25 years.”
• “We're designed to crave sweetness, and in nature the only place that you find sweetness is in fruit.”
• "We help farmers use 100% of what they grow.”
• “All the incentives are aligned and everyone makes money from each other's success.”
• “The process has to be very mild to the fruit. And then you need to manufacture it in a way that you don't need preservatives.”
• “It's all about the basics. This is not rocket science. The product has to taste amazing. It has to be priced in line with everything else. It has to communicate well to the consumer. It has to have a market fit.”
• “To make a product out of fruit, you need to create the whole supply chain and understand how to do it in a way that's profitable, that works for the supply chain, for the farmers, for you.”
• “At the end of the day, it's just a great product that checks all the boxes.”

Links:

Simуn Sacal on LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/sim%C3%B3n-sacal-05265715a/

Solely - https://solely.com/

Solely on LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/company/solely-inc/

Solely on Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/solelycleanfood/

Solely on Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/solelyfruit/

Solely on X - https://x.com/solelyfruit

Solely on TikTok - https://www.tiktok.com/@solelyfruit

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Chapters:

03:00 Introduction to Soli and Its Mission

06:00 Revolutionizing Fruit Snacks: The Soli Approach

09:03 Challenges of Using Real Fruit in Production

11:59 The Importance of Organic Sourcing

14:54 Understanding the Complexity of Food Production

18:05 The Role of Waste in Food Systems

20:57 Building Relationships with Farmers

24:02 Soli's Commitment to Sustainability and Health

34:09 Supporting Farmers Through Sustainable Practices

38:47 Innovative Manufacturing for Healthy Products

46:51 Future Growth and Product Innovation

52:41 Advice for Aspiring Food Entrepreneurs

56:40 Personal Insights and Reflections

62:19 Creating a Better World Through Aligned Incentives

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