Kelly Stouffer
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Salvatore Principato
Salvatore Principato
Rutgers Business School
Joe Markert
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“Our Mission of ‘Food is Healing’ is at the center of Urban Remedy. It is our belief system, not a tagline.” -Katie McMahon, Vice President, Urban Remedy
Urban Remedy aims to help people, the planet, and society as a whole. They accomplish this by crafting products that are nutrient dense while using recycled packaging. Many ingredients are locally grown which encourages the growth of local economies. Namely, smaller farming markets benefit when their produce is utilized.
Urban Remedy represents 3 of the UN SDGs for a better world.
Good health and well-being is a top innovation. Their mission to reimagine our food system as the key to unlocking one's best health may be a bit radical to some. For others, it is undeniable once they have experienced the benefits for themselves. This ideology is in line with innovation number 3.
As a Corporation B company, they have gone to extreme lengths to be recognized as an establishment that supports its employees, society, and the environment collectively. Innovation number 8 speaks to economic stainability and growth, which has been displayed in the 20 plus market launches that have taken place across the country in the year 2020 alone.
Climate change is a serious issue to this company, prompting extensive efforts to keep their carbon footprint at a minimum. This means that their values also align with innovation number 13.
Growing up in the farm-to-table culture of Northern California, Urban Remedy creator, Neka Pasquale, was inspired by those who strive to eat for health as well as pleasure. In her private practice of over a decade, Neka combined acupuncture and Chinese medicine with cutting-edge nutrition and lifestyle modifications to heal, balance, and create optimal health. Neka began leading wellness retreats for her patients. Over and over again, life-changing results were described after just a few days of consuming her prescribed diets. Inspired by these transformations, Neka knew she had found her calling and Urban Remedy was born.
Innovation number 3 works to ensure healthy lives and promote well-being for all, at all ages. A top belief of Urban Remedy is that inflammation is a precursor to many diseases. By creating easy to grab, nutritious, and assessable products, that are free of ingredients known to cause inflammation, they have made eating healthy convenient for all.
Innovation number 8 promotes sustained, inclusive and sustainable economic growth, full and productive employment, and decent work for all. With a work force of nearly 400 people, Urban Remedy represents a diverse base of employees. 50% of the Executive Leadership Team are women with 65% of team members also being women. 68% of the staff is diversified. This diversity provides different perspectives and a well-rounded thought process to guide decision making.
Innovation number 13 takes urgent action to combat climate change and its impacts. Over the past year, Urban Remedy has saved 5.9M gallons of water, diverted 290k pounds of CO2, and donated more than 20k meals in 2019.
These innovations benefit the business by creating a sustainable company. When an establishment lives and breathes its values and prioritizes these values over profits and growth, yet continues to profit and grow, something is being done right. This is exactly the scenario with Urban Remedy. They are breaking ground and turning heads. They are doing good and creating good. It is only a matter of time before they are a household name and what could be more beneficial to a company than this?
These innovations benefit society by creating a new wave of healthy living for those who choose to get on board. By crafting these products to fuel the body, and making them available to the masses, Urban Remedy creates an easily assessable source of proper nutrition in order to promote a revolutionary lifestyle choice. Through the integration of nutrient dense diets, consumers are able to transform their lives and reach optimal health.
Furthermore, not only do these innovations benefit society, they also benefit the environment. Through the use of naturally occurring ingredients, there is zero reliance on chemically altered products. Urban Remedy also believes in and supports regenerative agriculture, which is a rehabilitation approach to food and farming cultivation. Environmental benefits to this approach include strengthening the health and vitality of farm soil, promoting biodiversity, improving water cycle, and increasing resilience to climate change.
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Katie McMahon, Vice President-Head of Development
Urban Remedy is a cutting-edge fresh prepared meal, juice, and snack company that is taking the health food world by storm. Acupuncturist, herbalist, and founder, Neka Pasquale, did not set out to create Urban Remedy. Instead, it was a natural evolution stemming from her passion for healthy living with “food is healing” as her mantra. The establishment, which has made its way to consumers via Whole Foods Markets, strives to make each offering low glycemic, anti-inflammatory, and truly nourishing to every cell in the body.