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GOURMET NEWS MARCH 2015 www.gourmetnews.com Naturally Healthy NATURALLY HEALTHY 1 4 Chia Offers Promise as Next Big Ancient Grain BY LORRIE BAUMANN The grower who produces more than half of the world's chia supply is enthusiastic about the grain's potential as a protein- packed source of omega-3 fatty acids, di- etary minerals, fiber and antioxidants for American consumers who are hungry for better nutrition. His company, The Chia Company, drove 22 percent of the total chia category growth last year in a cate- gory that some estimate will reach $1 bil- lion in sales by 2020. John Foss, Founder and CEO of The Chia Company, is a fourth-generation farmer from Australia who is now based in New York City, where he is simultane- ously working on expanding the world's supply of chia and developing new prod- ucts incorporating chia seeds for the American marketplace. Back in Australia as a young farmer, he was growing com- modity crops, mainly wheat, on his fam- ily's farm. There, he began asking himself questions about the international epi- demic of obesity and diabetes and whether he was contributing to that problem. Foss applied for and won a traveling scholarship from the Nuffield Australia Farming Scholarships, an international program started by William Morris, Lord Nuffield, in 1943 in the United Kingdom to award scholarships for independent in- ternational travel and study to people who work in agriculture and associated industries in rural areas. The goal of the program was and is to develop the agri- cultural sector leaders and innovators of the future. The Nuffield Scholarships spread to other countries, including Aus- tralia, New Zealand, Canada, Zimbabwe, France and Ireland. With his 2001 scholarship, Foss trav- eled the world speaking to farmers, con- sumers and non-profit organizations, asking questions about what they needed from agriculture and what he might do on the farm to align himself with those needs. Widespread concerns about the role of the world's food supply in people's health and wellness drew his attention, and he began researching crops that might make a contribution. "Back then, I did the analysis of chia, and it was clearly the richest combined form of omega-3, protein and fiber that can be eaten in whole grain, raw form. There isn't any- thing else that meets those same nutri- tional qualities," he said. Foss began focusing on the question of why, if chia was so wonderful, it was not already available on the international market. "No one had built a sustainable supply chain where they had sustainable long-term crop production that was con- sistent in supply and quality and with stable pricing," he said. "When we talk about ancient grains, that's an issue that has been inherent in a lot of these revived crops. If they don't have a well-developed supply chain, quality and price can be er- ratic, and that doesn't give a food com- pany the confidence to include it in their products." Finding that answer was relatively sim- ple, but the hard part was figuring out what to do about it. Foss spent the next five years learning how to grow chia and devel- oping a supply chain. "I left a hundred- year-old family business in wheat production that was highly successful and is still highly successful to dedicate myself to chia," he said. Today, he operates the world's largest-scale chia farm in the Kim- berley region of Western Australia. By 2008, Foss was confident in his sup- ply chain and launched The Chia Com- pany brand. Chia found eager acceptance in the Australian market, and food pro- ducers began to add chia to their breads, baby food, snacks, breakfast cereals, gra- nola bars and even breakfast smoothies to enhance their nutritional profile. In 2011, Foss brought The Chia Company brand to the United States through Whole Foods Market. "We had immedi- ate success in the regions we're in," Foss said. "We decided to up the push into the American market because we could see that consumer acceptance was high, and we decided to move some of the team to the U.S." Chia crop production has expanded to Africa and Central America, where the crop thrives in the equatorial climate, and the company is working with local farmers to offer them a sustainable crop option and, at the same time, to ensure that there is transparency for consumers about where chia comes from and what it can contribute to their diets. "With the Nuffield scholarship, I was looking at how consumers shopped, and I was interested to learn about the in- creasing popularity of farmers markets. When I asked consumers why they were shopping at the farmers market, they said they wanted the connection to the farm and the farmer, the connection between the food they were consuming and the farmer who was producing it. People were choosing and are still choosing to connect and understand where their foods come from," Foss said. "I wanted to carry the same philosophy of being able to share with the consumer where the product was grown, who was growing it and what impact that had on their com- munity. I also wanted to let the farmers know those things. Connecting farmers and consumers is still all about what the company is, where and how we grow chia and to show the farmers who's buying chia and why." Today The Chia Company, in addition to supplying the world with chia seed to use in their own food preparation and processing, also produces a line of pre- pared foods under the Chia Pod brand. "Health and wellness has moved main- stream and people's desire to know more about their food has spread into the mainstream. That's really changing the landscape for retailers, and they're look- ing for more products that meet that re- quirement for consumers," Foss said. Chia Pods, packaged breakfast foods made with chia, fruit and oats or muesli, check off a lot of boxes for American con- sumers, which helps to explain why The Chia Company sold a million units within 90 days of launching Chia Pod. They are dairy-free, deliver 3 grams of omega-3s and 6 grams of dietary fiber and are entirely free of preservatives and additives. Cold processing has been used to ensure the full nutrition, taste and color of the fruit is retained, and pure co- conut milk gives Chia Pods a creamy tex- ture while providing healthy, medium-chain fatty acids. The lightly sweetened flavors are sweetened with low-fructose and low-glycemic index co- conut sugar. Chia Pods, Chia Pod Bircher Muesli and Oats + Chia are vegan and non-GMO. The Chia Pod lid, cup and spoon are made from 30 percent recycled material and are 100 percent recyclable, according to the company. The Vanilla Chia Pod is currently the top-selling chia product in the United States, and four Chia Pod varieties are in the top 10 chia products in the United States "We're an innovative company, and we continually innovate. We've extended the range of Chia Pods, so we've got new flavors," Foss said. "We're focusing on the breakfast food space. There aren't a lot of healthy breakfast food products that are convenient. A lot of breakfast is eaten at work, in the car, at the desk. Peo- ple are looking for a healthy food that's convenient … We just see so much op- portunity, because consumers are looking for health and wellness and convenience. We're intending to expand the range of products in both the retail and conven- ience channels." GN Absolutely Gluten Free Absolutely Gluten Free recently introduced a flourless, Cauliflower Crust Gluten-Free Pizza, available with mozzarella cheese or non-dairy mozzarella-style cheese. Individual pizzas con- tain just 57 calories and 1.7 grams of fat. SRP: $4.99-$5.99 www.absolutelygf.com Natierra Himalania Organic Dark Chocolate Chia Seeds and Milk Chocolate Chia Seeds are the latest addition to Natierra's decadent superfood line. Chia seeds are an excellent source of magne- sium and fiber with 2.5 grams of Omega-3 and 1 gram of Omega-6 per serving. www.natierra.com 18 Rabbits 18 Rabbits is launching Jr. Organic Granola Ce- real, a new cereal made from organic and non- GMO ingredients. The better-for-you made-from-scratch breakfast line comes in Caramel Apple and Chocolate Banana varieties. SRP: $4.99 www.18rabbits.com Nasoya Nasoya's Pasta Zero Noodles are a low-calorie, low-carb, gluten-free noodle made from konjac and chickpea flours – available in angel hair, fet- tuccine and spaghetti varieties. The noodles contain only 15 calories and 4 grams of carbs per serving. www.nasoya.com Get Healthy! Four Companies Bringing Something New to the Natural Foods Aisle

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