Once Upon a Farm recently launched its first ever Refrigerated Oat Bars as part of its innovation pipeline. The bars are refrigerated for freshness, made with real fruit and veggies, fueled with 100% whole grain oats, and drizzled with a no-added-sugar icing. Flavors include Strawberry, Banana Chocolate, and Apple Cinnamon. The company was founded in 2015 by Cassandra Curtis, now chief innovation officer, and actress Jennifer Garner came on board in 2017.
We recently touched base with Curtis to learn more about the bars and why the children's nutrition company decided to branch out past its initial products.
Liz Parker: Why did Once Upon a Farm decide to branch out into the snack space? What was its first product and what has been its most recent product not including these Bars?
Cassandra Curtis: We’ve always knew as a brand that we wanted to expand our product portfolio outside of our successful pouch format. Creating these Refrigerated Oat Bars took us two years to master the perfect recipe and really understand the white space where parents and kids’ needs are unmet in the grocery store. What we knew for certain was making sure these new Refrigerated Oat Bars were going to have the same Once Upon a Farm standard we have across all our products and that’s making sure it’s nutritious and delicious at the same time.
In June 2021, we introduced our frozen Plant-Rich Meal line. This was a natural extension of our baby portfolio making it even easier for parents to choose and prepare nutritious meals for babies and toddlers. Our most recent product launch, not including these Bars, is our Dairy-Free Coconut Yogurt Alternatives. Our pure, probiotic, creamy coconut yogurts are made with only simple ingredients, no added sugar, no natural flavors, and full of fruits.
LP: What made you decide to make the bars refrigerated? And, once out of the fridge, are they shelf-stable for a period of time, or must they be consumed immediately?
CC: Creating fresh snacks is part of our DNA. Because our portfolio of products is found in the fridge/freezer it was only natural for us to create a refrigerated snack bar. Like all our products, the bars are refrigerated for freshness plus there bars are perfect for on-the-go (outside of the fridge) for up to one week.
LP: How did Once Upon a Farm get started and is this the first food brand for Jennifer Garner?
CC: I started Once Upon a Farm in 2015 because as a working mom of three beautiful daughters – I did not have time to shop, chop, and prep nutritious and delicious food for my girls, and it was difficult to find organic, pre-made food at the caliber and quality I was expecting at the supermarket. I knew parents were struggling with the same problem, and it was this dilemma that inspired me to create the first refrigerated, HPP organic, non-GMO baby food brand: Once Upon a Farm.
In 2017, John Foraker and Jennifer Garner joined Once Upon a Farm as co-founders. John is also our CEO and Jennifer is our chief brand officer. During our first meeting prior to them joining, we shared the same vision in creating the next generation baby and kid nutrition company. We all wanted this brand to succeed because there was nothing else like it out in the market. We wanted to solve a problem for parents and that’s making sure babies and kids get the best nutritious (and delicious!) food/snacks they deserve, while making a positive social impact on the communities that need it most.
LP: How did you decide on the recipe for the bars?
CC: Just like fresh and refrigerated are part of our brand DNA, so is disruption. So the question became, how can we create the most delicious, most nutritious bar in a refrigerated format this is unlike anything else on the market? From there we did lots of kid testing with multiple disruptive ideas and kids confirmed their love of oats. We did many iterations from there to ensure we had the best tasting, most nutritious bar on the market that had the first No Added Sugar Drizzle.
LP: What’s next on the horizon for 2023 or 2024 for Once Upon a Farm?
CC: Our Refrigerated Oat Bars are just the start of our innovation pipeline over the next few years. There’s lots more coming in 2024 that will serve both baby and big kids, and still have the nutritious qualities and deliciousness that have made our products appealing to parents and kids a like. We’re excited to share these new products with everyone – stay tuned!
