Hardware Podcasts

A climate-resilient ancient grain with Pierre Thiam of Yolélé (2022)

How I Built This · 21 Sept 2023 · 42m

What this episode covers

Pierre Thiam, co-founder of Yolélé, explains how he transitioned from a physics student to a chef and eventually launched a company to commercialize fonio, a drought-resistant ancient West African grain. He details the supply chain challenges of processing fonio, partnering with Woodlands and developing new mechanized equipment to eliminate waste and meet GFSI standards. Thiam also discusses Yolélé’s go-to-market strategy, including securing shelf space at Whole Foods through demos and leveraging social media influencers to build brand awareness for the grain in the US market.

Most relevant to

early-stage companies

Topics

Mentioned

Companies
Yolélé, Woodlands, Whole Foods, Taranga, DeLuca
Products
Fonio, Quinoa
Also
Philip Deveraux

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