EVONNE Morrison set up Good Nude Food after a dietician advised her to eat fermented foods like sauerkraut to help her eczema. Since launching in summer 2017, the company’s three varieties of “superkraut” are sold in 40 Scottish shops. The company is now focusing on expansion across the UK and Europe.
Name: Evonne Morrison
Age: 31
Position: Founder
WHAT’S YOUR BUSINESS CALLED?
Good Nude Food
WHERE IS IT BASED?
WHY DID YOU SET UP THE BUSINESS?
I HAD worked in the corporate sector for years as a trainee solicitor. The stressful environment took a toll on my health and I got eczema in my late twenties. I got prescribed lots of different creams and medications to clear it up. I looked into gut health and wanted to improve my diet.
I had seen different flavours of sauerkraut when travelling. If it is pickled it doesn’t contain live bacteria so I decided to make my own by experimenting. We have three different flavours. I wanted turmeric in one as I was trying to incorporate that into everyday meals for the health benefits. I wanted a spicy one too and the final one has spirulina which is algae in powdered form and is nutrient dense. I made it in my kitchen and I would ask friends to try it. It grew arms and legs from there. I was making the same flavours every time and the idea for a business came to me. I had always dreamt of having my own company.
I started to do this full time in the summer of 2017 when I was accepted onto the RBS accelerator programme. I found out I was pregnant the same week which really gave me the motivation to launch my product. I had nine months to get this product to market.
HOW IS IT DIFFERENT FROM COMPETING BUSINESSES?
THERE’S a lot going on behind the scenes of this company. I’m about to start a project with Scottish universities which will research bacteria and products and how they relate to gut health. The focus is making it as healthy as possible. It is fermented using pink Himalayan salt and is all naturally fermented in small batches. It is not pickled as this uses vinegar which kills off the good bacteria. I have recyclable glass jars – sustainability is important to the company and we encourage people to reuse the packaging. A primary school where the teachers eat the product recently made lanterns out of them for Halloween.
It is amazing to see it grow across Scotland. I have recently started working with Hailey Thomson, STV’s chef, who creates meal ideas and recipes for the company that complement the products.
WHAT IS YOUR TARGET MARKET?
PEOPLE say it helps with their arthritis. I have had no issues with that but it does help with my eczema. The products are nutrient dense and have live bacteria. I didn’t have IBS sufferers in mind when I created it but my friend with IBS says it helps her symptoms. People with immune conditions say it helps but I am not medically trained and I always say to speak to a doctor or dietician first. When I had eczema I spoke to a nutritionist who said to eat fermented foods like sauerkraut or kefir. I focused on sauerkraut as kefir is made from milk and aggravates my skin.
WHAT DO YOU ENJOY MOST ABOUT RUNNING THE BUSINESS?
I ENJOY when people say they didn’t think they would like sauerkraut. People say they have it for lunch every day and I love that we are encouraging people to eat healthily.
People say that they take it to work in a plain salad and it makes the whole meal. People who are unsure about fermented foods are surprised as it tastes so good compared to the pickled version.
WHERE DO YOU HOPE THE BUSINESS WILL BE IN 10 YEARS’ TIME?
IN 10 years we see Superkraut sold UK-wide and we also want to be established in international markets. In the next two years we are concentrating on getting established in the rest of the UK and then we will go international. We are looking at bringing out a fourth flavour and then maybe doing another health-focused product range. I would like to have more staff as well. It would be good to have a company that is recognised internationally but is still seen as a Scottish food company that is leading the way in healthy eating.
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