Consumers are looking for more and more transparency into the sourcing and production of their products. We’ve had Social Nature on the show to talk about The Modern Wellness Consumer and the data backing their values based shopping, and I wanted to dig into the behind the scenes of a brand building a really transparent supply chain. Renee Dunn, Founder of Amazi, has been in the Startup CPG community from the beginning, and I’ve been following them for a couple of years. Amazi is on a mission to help people snack on purpose with their 100% made in Uganda tropical fruit snacks and are building a more sustainable and equitable supply chain. Earlier this year, the Amazi team posted a reel on Instagram with Joel, their Operations and Co-Production Manager based in Uganda, and I asked Renee if her and Joel would be willing to come on the show and talk about building their transparent supply chain and navigating an operation spanning two continents. Thankfully they both said yes and we had a great conversation that I’m excited to share today.

Listen in as Renee & Joel share about:

• How Renee got started sourcing products from Uganda and when she met Joel to discuss building a facility and scaling
• The process of building out a facility in Uganda
• How Amazi worked with Sprouts to postpone their launch to support getting the facility opened
• What it looks like to work with local farmers and the process of bringing the fruit to the facility
• How the finished product journeys to the US and makes it to store shelves
• Their emerging work in private label and ingredient supplying to create more demand for products from the Uganda facility and farms
• And more!

Also a quick note that Joel’s audio can be a little tougher to hear at times due to the internet connection, but how cool is it that technology allows us to record podcasts with people across the world! I think you are going to find Joel’s perspective combined with Renee’s so helpful, so let’s dive in.

This episode was sponsored by Shopify. Go to shopify.com/startupcpg.
This episode was sponsored by IFT. Go to iftevent.org.
This episode was sponsored by Promomash + Crisp. Go to promomash.com/startupcpg.

Episode Links:

• Amazi website & IG @amazifoods
• Negonja Organics website
• Renee’s LinkedIn
• Meet Joel in this Instagram Reel

Shopify Links:

• Start a free trial and enjoy 2 months of Shopify for $1/month

IFT Links:

• Exhibit at IFT FIRST
• Attend IFT FIRST
• IFT website

Promomash/Crisp Links:

• Try Promomash + Crisp free for 30 days here
• Webinar recording: Promomash + Crisp Present: The Next Big Thing in WFM Demo Analytics
• Webinar recording: Distributor Data 101: 5 Things Brands Should Be Tracking and Why

Show Links:

• Join the Startup CPG Slack community (12K+ members and growing!)
• Follow @startupcpg
• Visit host Jessi's Linkedin or website
• Questions or comments about the episode? Email Jessi at podcast@startupcpg.com
• Episode music by Super Fantastics