Simple Mills

We are so proud to announce that 2024 marks the fifth year of the Simple Mills Direct Trade program! We’re working directly with organic farmers in the Midwest to reimagine the commodity agriculture system by forging direct, meaningful sourcing relationships with farmers to help enable regenerative agriculture adoption, reduce grower risk and deepen our farmer connections.  To celebrate five years of the program, we brought our influencer partners to Minnesota to visit A-Frame Farm (one of our Direct Trade partners!) for a peek behind the curtain of our direct sourcing model. Through this program, Simple Mills works with our farmer partners to:  - Cover the cost of planting seeds to demonstrate upfront commitment   - Provide incentive payments for growers to use toward implementing regenerative principles (practices such as cover cropping and livestock integration, demonstrated at A-Frame Farm!)  - Develop multi-year agreements and structure contracts to provide more certainty to farmers about when they can expect market demand for their ingredients Bringing eaters to closer to the source of their food is a core part of the Simple Mills mission and we are so grateful for the opportunity to bring our partners right to the source. This trip was packed full of amazing meals, insightful conversations, motivating education and an overwhelming feeling of community – exactly what Simple Mills stands for.  

Help #women leading the food industry make it to the #SXSW stage by voting for our session with Driscoll's and Whole Foods Market! 1). Click Here: https://lnkd.in/g86Mbgkc  2). Cast Your Vote with the Up Arrow. 3). Don’t forget to share with others. Although women account for the vast majority of food-purchasing decisions in the U.S. and make up almost half the food service industry, they’re severely underrepresented across the board above entry-level positions. Female leaders from the grocery category’s most recognizable brands will explore this while unpacking how the “female mind” fuels creativity, category innovation and business success. Panelists will include Frances Dillard, Vice President, Marketing, Driscoll’s Katlin Smith, CEO and Founder, Simple Mills Sonya Gafsi Oblisk, Chief Merchandising and Marketing Officer, Whole Foods Market VOTE TODAY! #SXSW #PanelPicker 

Help #women leading the food industry make it to the #SXSW stage by voting for our session with Driscoll's and Whole Foods Market! 1). Click Here: https://lnkd.in/g86Mbgkc  2). Cast Your Vote with the Up Arrow. 3). Don’t forget to share with others. Although women account for the vast majority of food-purchasing decisions in the U.S. and make up almost half the food service industry, they’re severely underrepresented across the board above entry-level positions. Female leaders from the grocery category’s most recognizable brands will explore this while unpacking how the “female mind” fuels creativity, category innovation and business success. Panelists will include Frances Dillard, Vice President, Marketing, Driscoll’s Katlin Smith, CEO and Founder, Simple Mills Sonya Gafsi Oblisk, Chief Merchandising and Marketing Officer, Whole Foods Market VOTE TODAY! #SXSW #PanelPicker 

Sending a huge thank you to the team at Inc. Magazine for recognizing Simple Mills on their 5000 list! We are so proud to be named one of companies building the future – our vision is a world where food creates a better tomorrow for people and planet. Learn more at www.simplemills.com https://lnkd.in/ggUGydu

Monday listening 🎧 We are so honored to see our founder, Katlin Smith, featured on two recent podcasts – Dr. Will Cole I The Art Of Being Well and Life With Marianna with Marianna Hewitt! Check out the links below to learn more about the Simple Mills founding story, our trailblazing innovation strategy and our mission to revolutionize the way food is made to nourish people and the planet. Which is your favorite episode?! Did you learn something new about Simple Mills? https://lnkd.in/gVuTbQnB https://lnkd.in/gZJBXrW

Huge thank you to Forbes and Simon Mainwaring for this incredible Simple Mills story highlighting our mission to revolutionize the way food is made to nourish people and planet. “How do you feed the upcoming generation of consumers differently from the last? At Simple Mills, says Katlin Smith, it starts with synthesizing the most nutrient-dense snacks and other foods with agricultural practices that benefit the economic health of farming communities and the environmental health of the planet. It’s about direct contracts with farmers, partnerships that provide financial incentives for adopting regenerative agriculture practices, as well as purchase-guarantees for the crops.” Check out the link below to hear from our Founder & CEO regarding our trailblazing product innovation and people and planet initiatives! https://lnkd.in/gcvj7WfG

We are THRILLED to announce that Simple Mills has been recognized as one of Inc.'s Best Workplaces for 2024! We believe in creating a positive impact on people and the planet, both professionally and personally. Our mission-driven culture focuses on holistic growth, deepening connections, and enhancing well-being through a variety of programs: - People & Planet Retreats that unite our team with nature - Quarterly engagement sessions on regenerative agriculture and nutrition - Earth Month programming and farm visits - Live Full Fridays, closing our offices at 1pm every week to focus on our WANT-to-do lists Our team is the driving force behind our culture, which is why we are so invested in our talent! If you are interested in joining our journey, please check out our careers page. https://lnkd.in/gZUuECj

We are thrilled to share with you the Simple Mills 2023 People & Planet Impact Journal, the latest update on our mission to revolutionize how food is made to nourish people and planet. The 2023 journal marks an exciting milestone: the launch of our Mission Strategic Plan and the ambitions we’ve outlined for the years to come. Inside, you'll find updates on our commitments to change how food is made, change how food is grown, and ignite positive impact at Simple Mills and beyond. Highlights from this year's journal and our impact to date include: - 2,500 farmers across 9,000 acres and 4 sourcing regions engaged in regenerative agriculture awareness building and implementation programs - 17 products developed at the intersection of human and planetary health needs - 100% of our products prominently feature nutrient-dense ingredients with a balance of micro- and macronutrients - 45 unique crops in our ingredient portfolio beyond the most dominant four in our food system, helping bring more variety to agriculture and diets - In partnership with the National Young Farmers Coalition, we’ve supported more than 100 young farmer fellows to advocate for equitable and climate smart agriculture policy - More than 90% of Simple Mills employees have attended a farm visit to learn about regenerative agriculture principles in action We’re very proud of the progress we’ve made on our people & planet journey so far, and we know there is plenty more work to be done. We are committed to transparently sharing our progress, and this journal is an important part of that commitment. As we continue to evolve and grow our People & Planet work, we warmly welcome feedback. Thank you for joining us, and for all you do to create a food system that benefits people and the planet. https://lnkd.in/gnVcc6Hq

At Simple Mills, we're nuts about almonds! We're still smiling following the latest chapter of our regenerative agriculture work: an incredible Soil Health Academy in California's Central Valley! We're proud to have partnered with leading soil health educators at Soil Health Academy and pioneering regenerative growers at Burroughs Family Farms to host this inaugural academy focused on practical and profitable implementation of #regenerativeagriculture in orchard systems. Together with almost 100 attendees (including 14 from the Simple Mills team!), we explored how regenerative principles can be applied in almond orchards to positively impact farm economics, ecosystem health, and human health. The rows of bare soil, high input usage, and harvest from the orchard floor that define traditional almond production often feel at odds with regenerative principles, but Benina Burroughs Montes is truly questioning the status quo in this industry and refusing to take "that's how it's always been done" as an answer. From pioneering off-ground harvesting equipment to grazing sheep throughout the orchards, the Burroughs family is re-writing the story of CA almonds and stewarding orchards that honor the health of people and our planet. A MASSIVE thank you to the Burroughs family for opening their farm and home to us, to our incredible educators Chuck Schembre, CPSS, Gabe Brown, Allen Williams, Fernando Falomir, and everyone who made the time to join us. What an amazing event!

We are thrilled to announce that our Mission Strategic Plan has been featured on Fast Company's World Changing Ideas List! Last year, we put a stake in the ground and created an ambitious roadmap for the impact we seek to have on human and planetary health through 2026.     The way we make food and source ingredients is at the core of this plan. An equally important element of our approach is positively influencing the broader food system beyond our direct supply chain. Looking ahead, our aim is to drive more widespread impact through activities like advocating for improved agricultural policies and engaging with farming communities within and beyond our value chain. https://lnkd.in/eYnbU-2D