# R&D RADIO: Consumer Research, Product Platforms, and How to Scale Food Products the Right Way with Guru Hari of Guru Food Design

- Show: [The Startup CPG Podcast](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-startup-cpg-podcast)
- Published: 2026-07-06
- Length: 25m
- Episode: 335
- Page: https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-startup-cpg-podcast/2026-07-06-r-d-radio-consumer-research-product-platforms-and-how-to-scale-food-products-the
- Listen: https://share.transistor.fm/s/6439f07c

## Summary

Guru Hari Khalsa, founder of Guru Food Design, explains how to scale food products by integrating consumer research, cost of goods, and product platforms from the start. He details the transition from kitchen recipes to commercial manufacturing, emphasizing the need for blind taste tests and cost-targeted formulation to avoid failure. Khalsa shares examples of successful platforms like Yogi Tea’s Perfect Energy and Trader Joe’s cluster cereals, while predicting the next major trend in microbiome-focused foods.

## Outline

1. Introduction: Adam Yee and Guru Hari Khalsa
2. Guru's Career Path: From Biology to Food Science
3. Kitchen vs. Factory: The Challenges of Shelf Life and Scale
4. The Danger of Friends and Family Feedback
5. Formulating with Cost of Goods and Co-man Costs
6. Yogi Tea Perfect Energy Platform Case Study
7. Trader Joe's Cluster Cereal Platform
8. Innovating Beyond Generic Platforms: Plant-Based Mousse
9. Future Trends: Microbiome Science and Zoe
10. Following Science vs. Educating Consumers

## Topics

- [Validation & product-market fit](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/validation-and-product-market-fit)
- [Materials & manufacturing processes](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/materials-and-processes)
- [Pricing, margins & unit economics](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/pricing-and-unit-economics)
- [Industrial & consumer product design](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/industrial-design)
- [Scaling production](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/scaling-production)

## Most relevant to

early-stage companies

## Mentioned

- Guru Food Design (company)
- Yogi Tea (product)
- Trader Joe's (company)
- IQBAR (product)
- Kraft (company)
- Zoe (company)

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- [Advice Line with Katlin Smith of Simple Mills](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/how-i-built-this/2025-01-23-advice-line-with-katlin-smith-of-simple-mills) (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)
- [Sukhi’s Gourmet Indian Food: Sukhi Singh and Dalbir Singh](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/how-i-built-this/2022-03-14-sukhis-gourmet-indian-food-sukhi-singh-and-dalbir-singh) (How I Built This)
- [360 - Beyond the Die Line - The pitch was awful. They liked the bar! Tom Seymour and Ree Dolnick](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/people-of-packaging/2026-10-08-360-beyond-the-die-line-the-pitch-was-awful-they-liked-the-bar-tom-seymour-and-r) (People of Packaging)

## Citing this page

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