I started a granola business!
Today, as you read this, it is my first day working in a commercial kitchen making granola under the Probably Worth Sharing brand.
The granola business will run alongside this newsletter and my YouTube channel under the same brand. The content continues!
Here’s the granola sales pitch, and a bit further below is why I’m doing this if you’re interested!
Tl;dr:
I’m making granola out of the Wooden Boat kitchen and selling it online (in Ontario only) and at the Kitchener Market on Saturdays.
Please forgive my Photoshopped images on the website, I’m going to take better photos this week once the first commercial batches are done!
What are the flavours?
I’m offering these six flavours as year-round classics, and all flavours are vegan:
Morning Bun
Carrot Cake (with actual carrots in it!)
Lemon Poppyseed
Coconut Cream Pie
Cookies & Cream
Chocolate and Hazelnut
I’m also going to be creating seasonal flavours, like pumpkin pie (with actual pumpkin!), gingerbread, etc. And market flavours with whatever I find at the market – I made one during recipe testing with dehydrated local raspberries I turned into a powder, it was *chefs kiss*. Market flavours will be available in a few weeks once I get a rhythm going.
I’m using 100% organic ingredients, from fair-trade and direct source suppliers. You can view the full list of ingredient sources on my website. The organic oats are from Oak Manor, in Tavistock, ON.
I’ve also tried to focus great taste and a great nutrition profile, so the different flavours have 7–8g of protein per 1/2 cup (55g) serving, and only 3–7g of sugar per (depending on flavour).
How much is it?
Introductory pricing is $12.99 for 330g, or 2 for $25.
330g is around 3 cups or 6 servings (1/2 cup | 55g).
Where to buy?
You can order granola on my website, either for shipping (in Ontario only) or for pick-up at the Kitchener Market on Saturdays (7–2). I will also be at the Wednesday Market this week from 2–7.
I currently have two local retailers stocking as well: Legacy Greens has Morning Bun, Carrot Cake, and Chocolate Hazelnut in stock (available on Tuesday). Aura-La Pastries & Provisions will have a limited amount of all six flavours in stock next week as well.
Why pre-order for pick-up?
I strongly suggest you pre-order online if you want a specific flavour. Since I launched the website on Thursday I’ve already pre-sold over 100 bags of granola for this week and I don’t know how much I’ll have left by Saturday. (This is all very exciting.)
Why is shipping so expensive?
If you order online shipping is $20. I’m sorry shipping is so expensive, but that’s just what Canada Post charges me. I hope I can bring that price down over time as I learn more about how to optimize shipping fees. I’m offering free shipping on orders over $75 (use code Free75).
What about the packaging?
It’s all compostable!
I wanted to do something within my value system. Originally I had hoped to use glass containers, but they are expensive and heavy for shipping. Glass jars would add $2 to the retail cost.
After a lot of research, I ended up finding compostable zipper pouches and compostable stickers (you can learn more on the website). These are made primarily from cassava and are certified to compost at room temperature in 180 days – so even if they end up in the trash they will still decompose.
Is it gluten free?
The short answer is I have to say no.
Because I’m operating out of a shared commercial kitchen that also handles flour, I can’t guarantee the granola is gluten free. I don’t have the time or capacity to send it out for gluten testing at this stage.
Because of this there is a may contain gluten warning on the label, and a blanket allergy label.
The long-term answer is in order to obtain gluten free, vegan, kosher, and other certifications I’ll need to have my own kitchen space I can control – which will come much later.
Why is everything vegan, you’re not vegan?
There’s a few reasons I decided to go all vegan.
Originally I explored using butter in some flavours – but I would want to use the good, regeneratively farmed butter. There isn’t enough margin to do that. So I’ve replaced the butter with great tasting oils – organic Sicilian extra virgin olive oil, organic high oleic sunflower oil, and organic virgin coconut oil (different oils are used depending on the flavour).
Some of the flavours were naturally vegan, and then it became confusing from a labeling and retail sales point of view. Why are some flavours vegan, and some not? Do I need to make vegan variations of non-vegan flavours? It was easier to make everything vegan.
Then a few other ingredients, like honey, had to be swapped out. I found a regeneratively farmed, single-step evaporated cane sugar from a Green Cane Project farm that tastes great and I feel good about using.
Why can you only ship in Ontario?
To ship across provinces or to the US, I need to be operating out of a CFIA/FDA approved kitchen. It’s a higher standard than most commercial kitchens.
As well, to make an organic claim on the label for cross-Province shipping, I would need to obtain a Canada Organic certification (which audits my ingredient purchases). That takes time to complete and will happen much later.
But… why?
I’ve always wanted to open a bakery but the startup costs to do so are pretty high. A bakery bakery is a big bet on something I think I would enjoy, but I don’t have proof of that yet. I’ve been thinking about smaller scale ways to try it out.
When Ontario passed the home baking law in 2021, I thought perhaps that might be my way forward – but the Region of Waterloo Public Health supersedes that law, and you still need a separate commercial kitchen from your living space, even for low risk foods. So I tabled that dream and focused on what I could do – write and make videos.
And I’ve been doing that full-time for 8 months now. I’ve found it really challenging in ways I didn’t expect. When I left the tech industry, I thought money stress would be the big thing. But it turns out social stress was – I didn’t realize how much I relied on my work interactions for structure and social fulfillment.
While I love writing this newsletter and making YouTube videos, it’s very lonely work. It all exists in my own head, on my own timelines, with my own motivation. Much of it is about me, which I don’t always enjoy – in fact, it’s a bit demotivating. I created more YouTube videos when I was working full-time in tech than I have doing this work full-time.
I spent a lot of this year trying to close that gap in socialization that’s been missing in this new work. I’ve invested a lot in friendships, existing and new – like Cookbook Supper Club, my quarterly fancy dinner party, traveling to see friends, making friends with shop, restaurant, and farm owners, and more. It’s been a great year for friends and community.
You’ll see this focus on community continue into my content strategy through the rest of the year – as I introduce interviews in this newsletter and bring guests onto videos (Marci was here two weeks ago to film scones with me!). Marci will also be here next week with a guest post, but that’s to give me a week off to start the granola business.
For granola, my hope is that it gives me structure and community. I’m working out of Wooden Boat’s shared commercial kitchen every Sunday, a kitchen some of my food community friends like Beck’s Broth already operate out of. I’m going to be selling at the Kitchener Market every Saturday, also across from Beck’s Broth (and KW Empanadas). And I’m doing retail with my friends at Legacy Greens and Aura-La Pastries & Provisions. I’ve been able to riff on the granola ideas with my friends at Humble Lotus Sushi.
It’s been fun, and I think it’s going to be even more fun. I’m excited to be part of the Kitchener Market and get to meet folks in real life, get to know the other vendors, and become part of this lovely food community that’s growing here in Kitchener.
Hope to see you at the Market.
P.S. I have thought about writing about what the process of starting a food business is like – from business licenses and health inspections, to labels and regulations, to marketing and shipping. If you would like to see that as a future newsletter topic, let me know.
Congratulations - this is amazing!! I am so excited to place my first order and I'd LOVE to learn more about the process of starting this business.
Super excited for you!