Rising Stars: By boomers, for boomers

Packaging, too, is a challenge. Consumers expect organic products to be in completely recyclable packages. “We look for materials that keep our products fresh and allow for shipping perishable product,” says Meehan. “It can be a frustrating process, as this can raise the price of products the point people won’t buy them.”

“It’s fairly obvious one can’t be a perfect environmentalist,” says Nell. “Perfection isn’t the goal; a good life is. And a good life has a lot to do with who you are in the world, with intent as much as with the end result.”

Kettle Foods: Passion for chipping in

It’s the stuff entrepreneurial dreams are made of. With a lot more passion than capital, a starry-eyed, idealistic and enterprising 27-year-old Cameron Healy began driving a beat-up van along Interstate 5, selling cheese, roasted nuts and trail mixes to natural food stores from Seattle to Eugene, Ore., in 1978.

“I had no master plan, but I knew the priority for quality lifestyles and values would be growing into more mass markets as baby boomers matured,” says Healy. “I wanted to develop products of natural integrity that could be flexible in both the natural food and mainstream markets.”

His dream led to the 1982 founding of Kettle Foods Inc., Salem, Ore., making the only natural, hand-cooked potato chips in the Western U.S. at the time. “Although he pioneered a multi-million dollar segment in the potato chip segment, Healy continues to combine a community-oriented and family-style approach to business, and it remains privately owned so he can do things his own way,” says Kettle ambassador and historian Jim Green.

Healy’s “own way” and unique philosophy is in sync with the increasing demand for natural/organic foods. Kettle Foods supports sustainable farming methods that produce food grown without the use of chemical fertilizers and pesticides in naturally nourished soil. One of the first brands to recognize the health benefits of trans fat-free products, Kettle Food products are, and have always been, cooked with expeller-pressed safflower and sunflower oils (they contain no hydrogenated oil and no more than 10 percent saturated fat).

“The introduction of Kettle Potato Chips was a tremendous success, and we immediately had trouble meeting demand,” says Jim Green, Kettle's ambassador and historian.

Tortilla chips are made from organically grown corn and a patented process of adding sprouted corn to the masa. Only Northwest Russet potatoes, a variety high in natural sugars, are used for the potato chips. They crystallize during cooking and lend amber color to the chips. Even though processing organically grown potatoes presents challenges, Kettle’s potato chips have been organic since 1989.

Opening a bag of Kettle Chips, one sees tawny gold chips in a variety of sizes and shapes. The potatoes are cut thickly at all angles with the skins on. “Just as with people, we respect their individuality and, as a result, no two chips are alike,” says Chief Flavor Architect Carolyn Richards. Stirred by hand with a tool inspired by a garden rake, the chips react by forming crunchy curves and nooks of flavor — flavors from real lime, sea salt, vinegar, honey, roasted red peppers and other natural ingredients. Always on the lookout for daring flavor combinations, Richards oversaw the development of Spicy Thai and Cheddar Beer last year, and her current favorite is Roasted Red Pepper with Goat Cheese, rich cheese blended with sweet peppers, tomato, onions, parsley and garlic.

Stellar growth and expansion between 1984 and 1988 led to the addition of new cooking and packaging equipment. “The introduction of Kettle Potato Chips was a tremendous success, and we immediately had trouble meeting demand,” says Green. “We actually had to ration them at first. Soon a production facility was built and Kettle Chips were made as fast as they were ordered. Production capacities were increased to meet the expanding popularity of our products.”