On this episode of the Lead With Purpose podcast host, Tze Ching Yeung talks to Rebecca Ghim, founder of The Firm, a company that produces kimchi – a fermented food made of commonly discarded food byproducts to talk about her product and food waste more generally.

KEY TAKEAWAYS

• The work ‘kimchi’ derives from the word for ‘dunked vegetables’. It’s similar to lacto-ferments and sauerkraut but instead of vinegar, it uses salt brine to preserve the vegetables. Kimchi making was something I always did with my family and when I moved away I missed it so much that I started making my own because store-bought ones weren’t the same, but using local vegetables rather than importing vegetables.
• I was able to choose whatever I wanted to study for my masters, I chose food waste because it resonated with me the most and I’ve always enjoyed talking about food. I didn’t realize it was going to become the focus of the master’s degree! It led to modules on food insecurity, soil health, farmers’ rights, food sovereignty, and racial biases within the food industry and how colonization and industrialization have shaped the supply chain we have now. 
• The main ingredients are rescued from restaurants and hospitality level (catering companies), they have about 100-200kg of cauliflower leaves and broccoli stems that they provide me with per week. I can’t take all of it, so I can only take about 60kg depending on demand a sales. 
• Just in the UK we produce 9.5 million tons of food waste per year. That’s enough to feed the 8.4 million people in the UK who are in food poverty. Globally, one-third of all food produced goes to waste. This also means the water, labour, and transport emissions are all wasted too. 10% of global emissions come from food waste. Farmers’ rights are being overlooked, they’re not being compensated properly, and the people who deserve to have better food don’t have access to it either.

BEST MOMENTS

‘The idea for my startup was that it would be an interesting, marketable idea to reduce food waste using kimchi.’
‘It was passion-led, I didn’t plan it.’
‘The only way to eliminate household food waste is through behavior change and education around what is “edible” vs “inedible”.’
‘I get rid of the pain points for restaurants and hotels by taking the food waste they would otherwise be charged for disposing of.’

ABOUT THE GUEST

Growing up in South Korea, Rebecca Ghim participated in Kimjang, a collective ritual where a neighborhood comes together to make kilos of kimchi.

She kept up the ritual while studying abroad, first with friends and now through partnerships with restaurateurs and farmers.

Rebecca’s business, The Ferm, produces a range of fermented food made of commonly discarded byproducts. She hopes to bring better gut health to customers by promoting probiotic meals while helping to create a circular economy within the UK’s food systems.

The Ferm’s products are being sold in farmer’s markets, delis, health food shops, and cafés in London. Rebecca has also trialed a fermentation service with the OXO Tower Restaurant where she collected their waste cauliflower leaves and turned them into kimchi to use in the restaurant.

She’s now looking for ways to expand this B2B fermentation service alongside her products.

ABOUT THE HOST

Tze Ching started her entrepreneurial journey back in 2007 with the launch of a sustainable clothing & home furnishing e-commerce business. Next, she created a sustainable fashion brand.

In 2019, she launched a social enterprise to help raise awareness about the negative impact of fashion at schools & colleges. 

Through the 15-year journey, she learned so much, but easily the most meaningful lesson learned was about the importance of marketing. She now focuses on channeling those insights to help others succeed through We Disrupt Agency, a business coaching, mentoring & digital marketing company. 

Tze Ching’s mission is to create a community of global change makers and to contribute to positive change in both people & planet.

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