The Origin of Folk Revival

Working it Out 

The idea for Folk Revival hot cereal cups came into focus after some intense morning workouts. I had never been great about working out.  Sure, I’ve joined gyms and gone through phases of biking and running, but it wasn’t baked into my routine the way it seemed to be with some people.  At the time, I was back at the gym, seeing a trainer, pushing my body pretty hard, and not really ‘seeing’ the results I wanted.  I was definitely getting stronger, but my gut wouldn’t budge!  One morning my trainer caught a glimpse of my apparent frustration and asked me what I eat.  This exchange resulted in an epiphany:  I was unwittingly undoing all my efforts with my daily intake of carbs! Here I was coming home from the gym and regularly feasting on a nice big serving of oatmeal- because it's simple, and wholesome, and when I make it just right, pretty tasty.  But it’s also like coming home from the gym and eating a giant bagel!  40g+ of carbs!?  It just didn’t make sense for someone like me, with my metabolism, trying to keep his middle-aged belly from expanding further.  We all know that focus on nutrition and exercise are both required to achieve weight loss and health goals, but I was blissfully ignoring the nutritional part at the time, and I really should have known better. 

Going Nuts

So I started making some changes, cutting carbs, and began tinkering with my post-workout oatmeal.  I started with loading it up with nuts and seeds, and that seemed like a step in the right direction.  I felt like I was on to something.  I began to focus…really focus..  I started working on lots of different recipes in my kitchen.  I know I woke my family up more than once, to the sound of the coffee grinder, grinding nuts at 5:30 am.   But they knew I was on a mission, and this was something I just had to do.  And it wasn’t just a mission to look better.  My last visit to the doctor reminded me I really had to make some changes.  After optimizing countless recipe iterations, and burning through untold bags of ingredients, the perfect blend emerged from the mess: a mix of hemp, acorns, and other nuts that when put together with hot water or milk actually tasted fantastic!  I had found a recipe that replaced my morning oatmeal, that was packed with protein, low in carbs, and was working for me as a hearty post-workout breakfast.  I shared it with some family and friends who liked it too.  

Eureka!

In my line of work I have been a brand guy, so naturally the wheels started turning. But I’m also a natural foods guy; my belief in eating keto with all the health benefits was gaining traction and momentum!   I certainly wasn’t setting out to launch a keto food company, but I began looking around at other brands more closely and saw that most of the keto options out there were lacking a focus on simple ingredients and sustainability- two things that are dear to my heart.  And most of the natural foods brands I knew so well and loved so much actually offered very little in the way of keto products.  There appeared to be an opportunity to create a natural food brand focused on sustainability that also delivered keto functional benefits.   There was nothing like this on the shelves at grocery stores, even at places like Whole Foods, as far as I could tell.  Lots of questions arose. Would there be a market for this? What would I call it?

More to come... The Origin of Folk Revival - Part II coming soon.