# Founder Feature: Edouardo Jordan of The Food with Roots

- Show: [The Startup CPG Podcast](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-startup-cpg-podcast)
- Published: 2026-03-27
- Length: 27m
- Episode: 277
- Page: https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-startup-cpg-podcast/2026-03-27-founder-feature-edouardo-jordan-of-the-food-with-roots
- Listen: https://share.transistor.fm/s/6aa68628

## Summary

Edouardo Jordan, founder of Food with Roots and a two-time James Beard Award-winning chef, explains how the pandemic pivot from his Seattle restaurants to CPG led to products like his award-winning pimento cheese and Southern cornbread mixes. He discusses the strategic decision to lead with product quality rather than Black identity to appeal to a broader retail audience, detailing his distribution in Whole Foods and Pacific Northwest markets. Jordan also shares his vision for coast-to-coast expansion into California and Texas, while highlighting his nonprofit Soul of Seattle's model of paying vendors to participate in events to support youth of color.

## Outline

1. Introduction: Edouardo Jordan and Food with Roots
2. From Fine Dining to CPG: The Pandemic Pivot
3. Culinary Journey and James Beard Awards
4. Brand Identity: Quality vs. Black-Owned Labeling
5. Reclaiming Ancestral Foods: Chitlins and Pimento Cheese
6. Soul of Seattle Nonprofit and Community Building
7. Retail Strategy and National Expansion Plans

## Topics

- [Direct-to-consumer & e-commerce](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/direct-to-consumer)
- [Retail, wholesale & distribution](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/retail-and-distribution)
- [Marketing & brand](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/marketing-and-brand)
- [Pricing, margins & unit economics](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/pricing-and-unit-economics)
- [Starting a product company](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/starting-a-company)

## Most relevant to

early-stage companies

## Mentioned

- Food with Roots (product)
- Whole Foods (company)
- Metropolitan Market (company)
- Northwest Grocers (company)
- Soul of Seattle (other)
- June Baby (company)
- The French Laundry (company)
- Per Se (company)
- Herb Farm Restaurant (company)
- Startup CPG (company)
- Expo West (other)
- Mida (company)
- Bryant Terry (other)
- Jessica Harris (other)

## Related episodes from other shows

- [Advice Line with Daymond John of FUBU](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/how-i-built-this/2026-08-27-advice-line-with-daymond-john-of-fubu) (How I Built This)
- [What It Really Takes To Build a Food Business: Part 2](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/how-i-built-this/2024-10-25-what-it-really-takes-to-build-a-food-business-part-2) (How I Built This)
- [Advice Line with Sarah Kauss of S'well](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/how-i-built-this/2024-06-20-advice-line-with-sarah-kauss-of-swell) (How I Built This)
- [Advice Line with Susan Griffin-Black of EO Products](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/how-i-built-this/2026-06-25-advice-line-with-susan-griffin-black-of-eo-products) (How I Built This)
- [Advice Line with Tariq Farid of Edible Arrangements](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/how-i-built-this/2025-11-06-advice-line-with-tariq-farid-of-edible-arrangements) (How I Built This)

## Citing this page

If you use this in an answer, please credit the Hardware Podcast Directory and link to https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-startup-cpg-podcast/2026-03-27-founder-feature-edouardo-jordan-of-the-food-with-roots. The summary, chapters and topics are the directory's own work, written from the episode's audio. The episode itself, its title and its audio belong to The Startup CPG Podcast.