Ladera Foods has Rebranded & Launched New Products!

If you hadn’t already heard…

We’ve rebranded AND launched some NEW PRODUCTS!

Over the past 10 years, our family recipe grew from our family’s home kitchen in Ladera to reach 1000’s of grocery stores, restaurants, around California and beyond. During this time, we moved the location of our bakery four times and rebranded four times. We met so many amazing team members and industry advisors along the way. It really has been a remarkable journey.

THE PANDEMIC & LADERA

Quarantine has been a challenging time for so many of us. We are so fortunate to have survived this crisis thus far, however it hasn’t been without wounds. Like many food companies, we have lost major business – some of our favorite local restaurants and universities, like Stanford, simply can’t function as they have before. We also lost several key personnel who are not safe doing our in-person deliveries or in-store tastings. During quarantine, we have been busy reflecting on what we stand for and our future.

WHERE IT ALL BEGAN

We started our business in a challenging time, following the Great Recession of 2008, which lingered on in some industries through 2011. As a recent university graduate struggling to find PAID work, making a business out of my granola making hobby didn’t seem like such a bad idea. I did plenty of market research at our local stores and all over Ithaca, where I attended university. There was no granola that could compare to ours, we had it all – amazing flavor, perfectly caramelized almonds and pecans, and surprisingly, so much less sugar, usually a difference of more than 50%. It’s really crazy how much sugar goes into what we consider health food.

So then it began, according to the Palo Alto Daily Post, we were a glimmer of hope in an otherwise trying time. Just look at our front page article between robbers grabbing gold, a lemonade stand flasher, and the fourth murder in EPA. Luckily 2011 wasn’t as bad a year as the July 26th news makes it seem.

A glimmer of hope in an otherwise trying time.
– Palo Alto Daily Post

Now getting back to quarantine, we had plenty of time to reflect on our business and decided to make some changes. The first thing you will notice is our brand – it’s brand new. What are your thoughts on it? Leave us a comment below!

Our new brand reflects a new focus for us – we have a growing list of tenants we stand behind:

1. Ladera is not just a brand owner, but a true food manufacturer.

Ladera does not use co-man or co-pack facilities, the company maintains all production under one roof which keeps prices attainable for middle-income consumers.

2. Ladera’s messaging on nutrition is science-based.

Nutritional and food science overall is plagued with misinformation that distracts the general public from what is important to them. Obesity is a major issue and consuming more superfoods, organic, or different types of sugar isn’t the answer.

3. Ladera’s ingredients are clean.

The ingredient lists of Ladera’s products are all easily understandable intellectually and by taste.

4. Ladera’s products provide a bridge of functionality and flavor.

The goal of Ladera’s granola and protein bites products are to provide an alternative that is tastier and healthier than traditional RTE cereal or salty snacks.

5. Ladera products don’t use animals.

Climate change is real and supporting animal-based agriculture in its current form is a problem, not just for animals, but our planet.

6. Ladera promotes a holistic approach to health.

While our product focus is amazing food, we aim to inspire our audience to exercise more and sleep better, your diet is just one piece of a larger equation.

NEW PRODUCT LINE?

You may have heard us allude to our new product line, our Protein Bites. These new bites launched in December and are salty snacks with a crunch. Their functional benefits come from superfoods such as buckwheat and chia seeds and each serving contains 12 grams of plant-based protein. The addictive flavor and crunchy texture are unique to protein bites – a category that traditionally lacks strong flavor profiles and appealing texture. These snacks replace chips and pretzels and other salty snacks for more health-conscious snacking.

BUT WAIT, THERE’S MORE:

If our bites didn’t get you excited enough, we also launched super sleek Cycling Kits so you can now ride in style and #ClimbHigher with all of us at Ladera!

We promise to do a much better job communicating with you on the progress of our company ongoing, that’s one of our 2021 resolutions 🙂 We will keep on making amazing food and will do our best to inspire all of you to become better versions of yourselves. I believe the best things come in threes, and the same is true for the fundamentals of health and wellbeing. Diet, exercise, and sleep are so important to being healthy and happy, so we hope to help inspire you to get there. #2021 goals

Here’s my first picture of 2021, out on a hike in Old Princeton Landing by Half Moon Bay. Check out the Seal Cove Cypress Tree Tunnel if you haven’t already!