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Take Two
Giving a second chance to food by upcycling nutrient-rich grains
into delicious plant-based barley milk
To find out more about how Take Two got its start and what’s in store for the future, Matt interviews Take Two founder, Jerek Lovey
More about the episode
Matt sits down with Take Two founder Jerek Lovey. Take Two makes plant-based barely milk with a huge emphasis on sustainability using upcycled spent grain as a key component in their tasty game-changing dairy-free milk.
In a lot of ways, the inception of Take Two was fairly Serendipitous. Jerek had just sold a wildly successful kale chips brand that you probably had the chance to enjoy. He wasn’t actually looking to start another business but was approached by Anheuser-Busch to work on a way to upcycle spent grains from their brewing process.
Take Two is changing the game for plant-based milk on seemingly all fronts. To start, their dedication to sustainability is unparalleled to the point of them helping to repurpose thousands upon thousands of spent grain that otherwise would go to waste. On the nutrition front, their barely milk is so much more nutrient-dense than your typical plant-based milk but, most importantly the taste and texture of Take Two is amazing. It really all comes down to barely as the x-factor to fixing the classic problems of plant-based milk while helping offer a better more sustainable solution. So, how just how does one start a plant-based milk company let alone pioneer a new and progressive upcycling technique.
In this episode of Built On Passion, Jerek Lovey shares the story of how he started a plant-based milk brand from the ground up, how barely is a game-changing grain of the future, what it took to build out their upcycling process, and the ‘How’ and ‘Why’ behind Take Two.
Have an opinion? We want to hear it! Join the conversation and leave a comment, check out show notes, and get all the links mentioned in this episode below
Key Points From This Episode:
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Meet Jerek Lovey and get a quick introduction to Take Two Foods.
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Hear the origin story of Take Two, which started with Jerek learning about the billions of pounds of spent grain that are wasted annually.
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What makes barley such a unique ingredient and Take Two’s goals for their consumers.
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Some of the other plant-based products that Take Two wants to produce.
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Insight into what it took to develop their upcycling process with Anheuser-Busch.
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Learn about the transition from kale chips to plant-based milk as an entrepreneur.
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What the production process of Take Two was like, from R&D to finished product.
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Take Two’s aspirations to create a powdered version of their product in future.
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Jerek reflects on how Take Two’s barley milk has been received by US consumers.
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How they have approached expansion, distribution, and retail partnerships.
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What Take Two’s partnership with Anheuser-Busch looks like now that they’re established.
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Upcycling versus recycling and how Jerek hopes to educate consumers.
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Why it’s important that we understand where our food comes from (and how it’s wasted).
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Challenges that Jerek had to overcome in getting Take Two to market.
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Jerek shares the most difficult parts of launching during COVID, including e-commerce.
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His advice for starting a food brand: stay true to why you’re passionate about it.
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Hear what his favorite part of running a food brand is: the people he works with.
Links/Resources:
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What do you think of Take Two? Leave a comment below to let us know!