Today we’d like to introduce you to Erin Croom.
Thanks for sharing your story with us Erin. So, let’s start at the beginning and we can move on from there
Small Bites Adventure Club started as a side project. I have spent my career in building and scaling farm to school projects in Georgia. Over the years, we had created curriculums, websites, and professional development workshops for teachers- but we kept hearing from teachers that they needed something that made it easy for them to get their students excited about eating fruits and vegetables.
It’s very time consuming for teachers to find recipes, go shopping for veggies, and make all the copies for instructions. So, I had the idea that we could merge the concept of a meal kit with a classroom activity.
We created our “Taste Test Box” and tested it out with the Drew Charter Pre-K students, and it was an instant hit. The kids loved it. The teachers loved it- so we knew we were onto something. Two weeks later, I gave a pitch at the Center for Civic Innovation, and we received our first big order. Three months later, we were packing and shipping Taste Test Box kits all over Georgia!
We’re always bombarded by how great it is to pursue your passion, etc – but we’ve spoken with enough people to know that it’s not always easy. Overall, would you say things have been easy for you?
We’re always trying to introduce kids to new tastes, and strike a balance with healthy ingredients. An early version of our ranch recipe was maybe a little too zingy, and the kids immediately let us know! So we make tweaks based on their feedback. We’ve got an incredible Chef, Asata Reid, who creates and tests all the recipes, so we know they will be a hit with the kiddos. Our lead educator, Jenna Mobley, makes sure that the educational standards connect with the activity.
We’d love to hear more about your business.
Small Bites Adventure Club is a social-impact venture – our mission is to help children discover, love, and eat their fruits and vegetables. Our first product, Taste Test Box, is a turn-key nutrition education toolkit for teachers, which includes all the pre-measured ingredients and instructions to create a simple, delicious recipe for kids to taste. Kits are delivered directly to their school, and teachers can lead the hands-on food education with their students. Activities are links to math, science, social studies, and literacy. Kids get stickers for trying new foods and also get a recipe to take home to their families.
According to the CDC., 9 out of 10 kids don’t eat enough vegetables. We know that when kids have the opportunity to try and taste new foods– they will eat and love their fruits and veggies.
Since we launched, we’ve reached over 10,000 students and served 50,000 bites of fruits and veggies. We’ve featured Super Power Kale Pesto, Lovely Lettuce, and Lemony Vinaigrette, Herbed Butter with Radishes! We buy from incredible local farmers, and the kids get to know them through our materials and videos. We love getting emails and calls from teachers and parents- they can’t believe that kids will eat kale, spinach, and carrots! I’m proud of the amazing team we have built, and how well this product translates into the classroom experience.
What were you like growing up?
My parents moved our family to Germany when I was in 2nd grade. They enrolled me in a small, rural school, where nobody spoke English. It was terrifying, but I learned the language and made great friends, I loved everything about living in a tiny village with a bakery, butcher and local farmers across the street.
Pricing:
- Annual Subscription : $50/kit for 10 months ($500)
- Semester Subscription: $55/kit for 4 months ($220)
- One time: $60/kit
Contact Info:
- Website: www.smallbites.club
- Phone: (404) 620 0231
- Email: erin@smallbites.club
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/smallbitesclub/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/smallbitesclub
- Twitter: https://twitter.com/smallbitesclub
- Yelp: linkedin.com/company/small-bites-adventure-club
Image Credit:
Kate Blohm Photography
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