St. Louis-based Start Right Foods introduces sprayable pure maple syrup

At the StL Venture Works’ Grand Center location, the sweet aroma of baked goods mixes with the tang of kombucha when visitors enter the incubator’s basement. One of the companies responsible for the sweet smell is Start Right Foods, which makes Belgian waffles that are packaged, frozen, and delivered to over 200 grocery stores in Missouri and Illinois. Kyle Rood and Clint Matthews, the co-founders of the company, studied to be a biomedical engineer and TV meteorologist, respectively, which begs the question: what are they doing making waffles?

At Mizzou, the two met in a program for developing medical devices, which became the subject of their first business venture, winning an Arch Grant in 2014. When it was clear that the device would take too long to develop, they made a seemingly abrupt shift to waffles. Why? Matthews had met researchers at Mizzou who were conducting studies on the effects of eating high-protein breakfasts—specifically high-protein waffles. According to the research, eating 30 grams of protein in the morning will result in consuming 400 fewer calories a day.

In 2015, Rood and Matthews formed Start Right Foods and made their first sales in 2015. The business began with the pair driving to a rented kitchen in Columbia twice a week, cooking waffles at a “blazing” speed, packaging them, and making deliveries that same day using Matthews’ truck and coolers packed with dry ice. 

These days, they are still cooking all of the waffles on single waffle irons, which boast nicknames like “Tom Riddle,” “Alpha,” and “Steve,” based on when they first came into use and how they perform. Like any well-used appliance, they apparently have their quirks; the temperamental Tom Riddle iron, for example, began as “He Who Would Not Be Named.” Now that the business is expanding, the co-founders recently put a down payment on an automated machine that will allow them and their small staff to produce enough waffles to fill 300 boxes an hour rather than the current 80 boxes.

One serving of the gluten-free waffles contains 1/3 cup of fruits (apples) and vegetables (butternut squash), 200 calories, and 15 grams of protein. The company’s website showcases recipes, “Start Right 30,” for the waffles and other foods, sometimes mixed together, that will help a person reach 30 total grams of protein. 

Early on, Rood wanted to make a sprayable maple syrup based on medical device aerosol technology because he thought it would be “fun, even just for personal use.” Earlier this month, the company launched that idea after filing a patent. What looks like a can of sprayable cooking oil uses a “bag-on valve,” which, according to Rood, “sequesters a product away from the propellant, so it’s 100% pure.”

What that means for maple syrup is that a thin, even stream can be sprayed on waffles or pancakes with no clogging, crystallizing, or dripping, from a can that’s shelf stable for over a year. Other products using the technology include olive oil, sunscreen, and medical device liquids.

In addition to the frozen waffles and sprayable syrup, Start Right also offers a dry pancake and waffle baking mix, so customers can make their own waffles fresh at home. A local chef developed recipes, found on the website, for high-protein sweets like banana bread, cinnamon-streusel cake, and “Romance in the Air” crepe cake, and savory dishes such as chicken and waffle sandwiches, pizza, and breakfast dogs.

Next up for the entrepreneurs is a breakfast sandwich composed of their waffles and a lean beef sausage patty from Williams Brothers Meats in Washington, Missouri, made exclusively for Start Right. Rood and Matthews formed a partnership with the Missouri Beef Council, whose “mission is to have more people eat beef for breakfast since pork dominates the market.” Currently in testing, the product will ideally be rolled out in mid- to late-fall.

On their unlikely path towards making healthy, high-protein breakfast food, Rood said, “It takes a lot of failures to find a success. We’ve learned that inexperience can be a really valuable weapon.”

Available at area grocers (check the website for where), the frozen waffles retail for around $6 a box. The sprayable syrup ($8.99) just arrived at Dierbergs stores and the baking mix ($8.99) will be on Dierbergs' shelves next week. Both can also be purchased separately or together ($17.49) through the company’s online store.

Follow the company on Facebook to learn more about their products, watch videos of production, and stay tuned for news.