Green Belly Foods: A Home-Grown Success Story of Sustainable Growth
Use the What’s Your Impact code for a discount when you make your Green Belly purchase:
whatsyourimpact2024
“People’s choices are always the biggest opportunity, but also the biggest challenge.”
In the heart of Colorado, where the mountains echo tales of tradition, Green Belly Foods emerged as a sizzling success story that transcends the realms of flavor. The journey began when Juan shared his mother's authentic Guatemalan hot sauce, an exquisite blend of cilantro, garlic, and habanero, with friends. The response was nothing short of explosive!
Fueled by the overwhelming demand, Juan decided to set up a tent at the local farmer's market in 2014. The reception was phenomenal, and Green Belly Foods was officially on the map. Recruiting his cousin, Charlie, with a background in business and a stint at a wine startup, the duo navigated the challenges of scaling up production while balancing family and the fervor of their burgeoning enterprise.
At the core of Green Belly Foods is a commitment to family and community. Overcoming startup challenges has not only strengthened their familial bonds but also transformed communities. Juan and Charlie believe in creating an environment where business is human, and they strive to build a company for people and products that serve people. Part of their journey in people first, is also building a planet first mentality and incorporating sustainable practices within their business model.
Sustainable Practices: A Recipe for the Planet's Well-being
What’s Your Impact interviewed co-founder, Charlie Stewart, to better understand how Green Belly Foods aims to incorporate sustainability into their business. Their journey on building a business, with a “people first” mentality, is nothing short of an inspirational story that we are excited to share. They are committed to business excellence while also having a positive impact on this world, leaving it better than how we found it. Yes, both successful business growth and sustainability are possible.
Green Belly’s first endeavor for sustainability started with their commitment to responsible packaging. The company looks for ways to reduce the use of virgin materials and reduce their impact on the overall life-cycle of packaging and any waste that is produced from that. They currently use glass bottles for all their products as it enables recyclability, reducing the environmental impact. Glass has an overall lower carbon footprint as compared to plastic bottles and is fully recyclable at end-of-life.
Local sourcing is another cornerstone of their sustainability efforts, with many ingredients coming from less than 100 miles from their Colorado production facility and markets. Their mission is to extend beyond organic certification, and into regenerative agriculture involving building direct relationships with producers to ensure the freshest and healthiest foods. Green Belly Foods actively seeks local sources to reduce the carbon footprint of shipping and transportation. Noteworthy is their recent switch to sourcing cilantro from California to a farm in Colorado, emphasizing their dedication to sustainability and reducing their carbon footprint.
Community Impact and Social Responsibility
Engaging and educating employees is a priority, with the team participating in zero-waste farmers markets across Colorado. The company utilizes compostable sampling materials to align with their commitment to sustainability. Utilizing compostable sampling materials represents a significant step towards reducing our dependence on single-use plastic. By adopting compostable sampling materials and hosting events that are zero-waste, businesses and individuals contribute to a healthier environment, minimizing the environmental impact associated with the production and disposal of conventional plastics.
Contributing to the local community goes beyond commerce for Green Belly Foods. The company organizes local trash pickup events in exchange for hot sauce. These events foster a sense of community engagement, encouraging residents to actively participate in the upkeep of their surroundings. As people come together to clean up public spaces, social bonds strengthen, creating a shared sense of responsibility for the well-being of the community. Follow Green Belly Foods on Instagram or Facebook to stay up-to-date about their local events.
Green Belly Foods prioritizes education for future generations and aims to enhance both the environment and lives. They actively contribute to schools in Guatemala through donations as their company believes that proper education is an important step to making our world a better place.
Innovation and Technology: Pioneering the Path to a Greener Future
Green Belly Foods continues to pioneer sustainable practices through innovation and technology. Research is underway to better understand how bioplastic packaging methods might be incorporated into future business models, with a focus on sustainable ink alternatives such as algae ink. Investigating the chemical composition of inks used in labels is crucial for minimizing environmental impact, especially considering the large quantities involved. Balancing quality and cost is a challenge, as the cost of eco-friendly options can be prohibitive.
Efforts are also directed towards finding compostable shrink bands as well as transitioning from plastic caps to cork caps. Exploring alternatives for squeeze packs is ongoing, with the goal of avoiding one-use plastics. However, maintaining the ability for hot filling, essential for food safety, adds complexity to this quest for more sustainable packaging solutions.
Challenges and Lessons Learned: Empowering Change
Specific to the business, seasonal availability poses a hurdle, especially for fresh products reliant on seasonal ingredients like habanero, which are not always accessible in Colorado. Additionally, products inspired by Latin America, such as those requiring mangoes, face geographical constraints. The company continues to look for opportunities to balance the freshness and quality of product with sustainability, but sometimes those practices need to be offset in other aspects of the business to ensure that the integrity and commitment is unchanged.
We also posed Charlie with a question around generalizing sustainability and his thoughts were on where we, as a society, face some of the biggest challenges on achieving sustainability in business practices. Addressing poverty underscores the importance of education in fostering a green mindset. However, communities grappling with immediate needs like clean water and food may prioritize differently, highlighting the disparity of wealth and values. Environmental concerns may seem like a privilege when basic needs are unmet, but education can empower individuals to improve their circumstances and contribute to broader sustainability efforts.
The challenge lies in garnering universal commitment to sustainability; while it's possible to inform and educate, resistance from those set in their ways poses a hurdle. Convincing individuals to not just be aware but take actionable steps remains crucial. “People’s choices are always the biggest opportunity, but also the biggest challenge,” says Charlie. What’s Your Impact couldn’t agree more.
Future Plans and Goals: Sustainably Profitable Impact
Looking ahead, Green Belly Foods is focused on elevating the business to sustainable profitability. A recent partnership with KeHE, a B Corp national distributor, in Q4 of 2023 marks a significant step, allowing their products to reach customers nationwide.
As Green Belly Foods expands, their commitment to community remains central to both their business ethos and philanthropic endeavors. “We work to keep our small business alive, profitable, and keep our lights on so that we can keep giving back,” says Charlie. Charlie emphasizes the importance of sustaining their small business to ensure profitability and ongoing support for philanthropic initiatives. This approach underscores the belief that a thriving business provides a stronger platform to make a significant impact on the transformation of lives, communities, and the planet at large. The interconnectedness of business success and positive social and environmental contributions reflects Green Belly Foods' dedication to holistic and sustainable growth.
In the world of hot sauce, Green Belly Foods is not just spicing things up; they're heating up the sustainability game with a recipe that goes beyond taste, creating a positive impact for generations to come.
If you want to try some of the delicious hot sauces or salsa from Green Belly Foods, you can use the What’s Your Impact link for a discount on any order from their website using the code:
whatsyourimpact2024