About
John Ypma’s long history in the food business — including a stint working with Gerber — led him to creating a line of organic baby food at Initiative Foods. Ten years in, the Fresno, CA-based brand has continued to grow and expand its line. The key to the tasty selections is simple, really: a blending of the finest fruits and vegetables into flavorful finished products.
Ypma says that Initiative’s success is all about the produce the company sources. He strategically started the business in Fresno to take advantage of the wonderful San Joaquin Valley produce. That’s all that ends up in the jars and bottles — no added sugars or salt, no GMOs and no pesticides.
“We start from fresh fruits and vegetables,” Ypma explains. “We only cook them once; there are very few things that taste good cooked twice, and a lot of baby food is cooked twice. The way that we pasteurize leads to a lot less heat in the product, so we’re not overcooking the product. We like to keep it as natural as we can keep it.”
- Visit the Initiative Foods website.
Episodes
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September 5, 2011
Sourcing Organic Produce with Initiative Foods’ John Ypma
John Ypma's long history in the food business led him to creating a line of organic baby food at Initiative Foods.