Continuing our series on FMCG industry start-ups vying for their big break, we talk to Sel Berdie, founder of the world’s first organic plant-based infant formula maker, Sprout Organic. Created in Australia, Sprout Organic is going global with presale orders from 19 international locations – and the list is growing. Inside FMCG: Who are you? Sel Berdie: I’m a dad of two who is basically obsessed with anything in the health and wellness space. Before having kids, I focused a lot of my ener
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Continuing our series on FMCG industry start-ups vying for their big break, we talk to Sel Berdie, founder of the world’s first organic plant-based infant formula maker, Sprout Organic. Created in Australia, Sprout Organic is going global with presale orders from 19 international locations – and the list is growing.Inside FMCG: Who are you?Sel Berdie: I’m a dad of two who is basically obsessed with anything in the health and wellness space. Before having kids, I focused a lot of my energy on my own health and fitness pursuits and played professional rugby league. Once I had kids, my attention naturally turned to them and I wanted to provide them with the very best I could, especially in the space of nutrition. I believed a plant-based diet would deliver this but there were no healthy and convenient products on the market so I decided to change that. What do you do?In short, we make organic and plant-based products for infants and kids to live a happy and healthy life. Our goal isn’t to be boxed into a specific category of the market, but to provide choice to all parents and kids looking for a healthy, sustainable and wholesome option when it comes to kids’ nutrition. Our brands and products are inclusive and intolerance-friendly, meaning they are suitable for everyone, which is something we are really proud of. What’s your biggest achievement?Being the first company to produce a plant-based, organic and intolerance-friendly formula. This product has taken over five years to develop and has been needed for such a long time. Our hope is that it will help millions of families across the world. What’s been your biggest challenge?Our biggest challenges probably still lay ahead as we expand globally with all countries having very different regulations for infant formula. With that said, our team has worked extensively from day one to ensure we are able to meet the food laws of each country and deliver our world-first product to as many countries as possible. Where to from here?We want to continue to increase our distribution and show that the plant-based and organic movement is one that is not just suitable for adults but a perfect and sustainable solution for infants, toddlers and kids. We want to stay at the forefront of innovation and keep delivering ground-breaking products across all food categories, and deliver these products to kids and parents across the globe.Pictured above: Sprout founders Jen and Sel Berdie with their two sons Kingston (left) and Ellis.
