How A Modern Baker Plans to Feed a Billion
How A Modern Baker Plans to Feed a Billion
How can personal challenges drive business innovation?
I’ve been an entrepreneur for most of my life, primarily in advertising and later in ad tech. But a tragic incident changed everything for me. My partner, Melissa—who is also my co-founder—faced a severe illness, and our challenges collided in a way that reshaped our path.
One of the biggest lessons in entrepreneurship is harnessing the power of vulnerability. Vulnerability isn’t a weakness—it’s the birthplace of real innovation and change. In Melissa’s case, we call it the gift of adversity. Shortly after we met, she was undergoing chemotherapy. One day, a trolley rolled into the chemo ward carrying refreshments—chocolate bars, potato chips, and sodas. She looked at it, turned to me, and said, WTF?
At that moment, she was just beginning to understand the connection between sugar and cancer. That realization hit both of us hard. We knew we had to do something about it. The world didn’t need another trendy health product like nut butter or birch water. To make a real impact, we had to tackle a staple food.
Then, there’s my side of the story. My nine-year-old daughter passed away from an asthma attack. That loss shattered everything—my family, my perspective, my sense of purpose. For four or five years, I was in a dark place. I wasn’t sure I’d come out of it, but I did. And when I did, I saw life differently.
So, there we were—Melissa facing her battle, me trying to rebuild after mine—both of us fueled by a deep sense of urgency and frustration. That’s why we started this business. That’s why we’ve pursued this vision with persistence and determination for six years. We’re here to give back, be honest, and create real change in an industry that desperately needs it.
How can entrepreneurs create a long-term impact in the food industry?
We've been working on this for six years, operating in stealth mode while collaborating with leading scientists, research technology organizations, and universities. Now, we've reached a stage where we’ve launched our first scalable product, which is why we’re stepping out of stealth and sharing our work.
Our first product is bread—specifically, a sliced loaf, which we see as the world’s most popular ultra-processed food. We've developed Super Loaf, now available in a major UK retailer and produced by one of the country’s largest manufacturers.
Our ultimate goal is to apply the platform technologies we’ve developed around nutrition to other food categories. We've already started this expansion, bringing our innovations beyond bread. Super Loaf is just the beginning—it's designed for consumers, based on human biology, and represents our mission to transform everyday foods.
Why should entrepreneurs seek government funding for scientific research?
Early in our journey, we realized we had to understand the science behind our actions. Our mission was to democratize healthy baking because industrial bread—one of the world’s most consumed ultra-processed foods—is inherently unhealthy.
Initially, we assumed the solution would be simple: improving ingredient quality, adjusting fermentation times, and refining the baking process. But we quickly learned that far more science was involved—much of it still unknown.
The big question became: How do we access that science? None of us were scientists and didn’t know where to start. That led us to explore government funding programs for innovation. The process was complex at first—complicated and hard to navigate. However, we applied for our first government grant not just for funding but also to establish credibility within the scientific community.
Once we secured that first grant, everything changed. Since then, we’ve won six consecutive government grants—a rare achievement for a small food company in the UK. Alongside some private investment, we’ve secured millions in funding and extensive government support.
This decision gave us direct access to top scientific institutions backed by credibility. Since the government funded the research, they ensured the work was thoroughly and independently evaluated.
While this approach isn’t available to everyone, many entrepreneurs—especially those tackling fundamental industry challenges—may find government funding more accessible than they realize. It can be a game-changer.
When should entrepreneurs bypass manufacturers and approach retailers directly?
We initially assumed that if we created a brilliant product that solved significant problems, we could take it to a manufacturer, co-develop it, and bring it to market. That was a mistake.
We discovered that manufacturers weren’t interested in solving problems—only retailers were. We didn’t anticipate having to complete the last mile of the journey ourselves, which set us back nearly two years.
We had a fully developed product for a long time, but no manufacturer was willing to take it on. Instead of support, we faced resistance, condescension, and even ruthless treatment from the industry. Ultimately, we had to go directly to retailers, who were far more receptive. Once they were on board, they pushed the manufacturers to work with us.
The key lesson? Be prepared to go the last mile yourself. Even if you think you’ve set everything up ideally, expect roadblocks—and be ready to push through them.
Why should entrepreneurs open-source their technologies?
As a purpose-driven business, it’s crucial that we openly share knowledge within our community. The more we help others understand what we’ve learned, the more momentum we build behind our vision.
We’re considering open-sourcing our platform technologies and revealing our entire food systems model around alternative nutrition. If the timing is correct, we’ll do this to accelerate progress because solving the problem is more important than being the only company with a solution.
There’s also a key lesson in entrepreneurship: What you fear will happen almost never does. Fear holds many entrepreneurs back—whether it’s being too protective of ideas, avoiding collaboration, or refusing to share insights with potential competitors.
Many entrepreneurs hesitate to share information without an NDA, fearing competitors will take advantage. But in my experience, nothing bad happens 99.9% of the time. Instead, honesty, collaboration, and openness often lead to unexpected opportunities.
*This interview has been edited and condensed for clarity.*
