Tara Tomulka’s path to building a food company began with burnout, anxiety and a growing realization that what she was eating was affecting how she felt.
After years working in corporate communications, Tomulka turned to nutrition and plant-based eating to help manage stress and improve her energy, eventually returning to school to become a holistic nutritionist and launching Rawcology as a blog in 2015.
What started as a way to share recipes and what she was learning about nutrition soon evolved into culinary classes, including the development of George Brown College’s first raw food course and its Vegetarian Culinary Arts 2 program.
A co-op experience with a nutritionist who had built a snack-food business also exposed Tomulka to the potential of creating healthier packaged foods, while her own frustration in grocery-store aisles convinced her there was an opportunity to do things differently.
In 2017, Tomulka turned Rawcology into a food business, launching a line of coconut chips made with organic, plant-based, low-sugar ingredients and without common allergens such as peanuts, tree nuts and gluten. Nearly a decade later, the company is continuing to expand its distribution while Tomulka remains focused on the principle that prompted her to start the business: making nutritious, better-for-you food more accessible without compromising on the quality of its ingredients.
Genesis of the idea came initially from teaching courses
“I was teaching in my condo. I was teaching at other people’s homes. I would rent different spaces and teach classes, like rent spaces and teach classes there. And then, as part of my journey too, I developed and taught courses at George Brown College in their food program,” says Tomulka, the brand’s CEO.
“At George Brown, I developed their first-ever raw food course and their Vegetarian Culinary Arts 2 program. So all plant-based food courses. And then also was teaching other food nutrition workshops. I had gone back to school to become a holistic nutritionist as well, and so the classes were largely focused on nourishing, holistic nutrition-focused recipes.”
Today, Tara’s sister, Laura Powadiuk, and sister-in-law, Megan Loach Tomulka, help run the venture.
Corporate burnout, stress and anxiety
Before venturing into this new concept, Tomulka had found herself in a period of burnout, stress and anxiety after working in corporate communications for a number of years.
“I had turned to nutrition as a way to feel better. I was very into reading other blogs about plant-based nutrition. I was very interested in healthy eating and wellness. And from everything that I was learning, I learned that food is powerful and life-changing. When you change your diet, it really can completely change and overhaul your lifestyle. So because of the changes that I had made, I was able to better cope with stress and anxiety, just feeling more energized day to day as a result.
“And so I was really inspired by that and from everything that I had learned. I wanted to go back to school for holistic nutrition to focus on that. It really was about just following what was calling me to learn more about. I went back to school to become a holistic nutritionist in nutrition school and, and so yeah, went back to nutrition school, first launched Rawcology in 2015 as a blog to share recipes and content. All of the information that I had been learning, wanted to share that with the world and started teaching the culinary workshops and classes and had also the opportunity at George Brown College because of the platform that I had built with Rawcology. That’s how the administrators at George Brown had found Rawcology and everything that I was teaching, so they had brought me in to develop their food courses.”
Starting a snack food business
When she was in nutrition school she had done a co-op with another nutritionist that had started a snack food business. From that experience, she learned a lot from everything that woman had built and Tomulka was really inspired by that and the ability to create healthier, better-for-me food products.
“At the same time, there was definitely a frustration I felt walking in grocery stores. I’d pick up the back of the package and not understand why packaged food needed to be the way that it was and still largely is today, filled with refined sugars, cheap ingredients, and inflammatory oils that ultimately make individuals sick,” she explains.
“And so I was really inspired to create healthier, better-for-you packaged foods. I had already been making my own snacks and recipes at home, and knew that if I had that frustration with packaged foods, that other people felt the same way and that there was a gap in the market for better quality, better-for-you products.”
The launch of Rawcology
Rawcology was first launched its food products with a line of coconut chips in 2017. Everything from the get-go was organic, plant-based, low sugar, and uniquely free from common allergens like peanuts, tree nuts, gluten, so that everyone could enjoy them regardless of dietary restrictions.
Prior to the launch and her journey, Tomulka admits she didn’t know much about nutrition.
“It was starting the day off going to Starbucks, getting a venti coffee and a yogurt. A simple yogurt and coffee for starting the day off. And then lunch was bought from the food court, not necessarily the best ingredients. And then at home it was relatively healthy, but I didn’t have the nutrition knowledge of truly how you nourish your body. So as a nutritionist, how I approach all meals today is you want the fab four.
“Healthy fiber, good fats, protein, and greens at every meal. And that’s how I like to frame setting yourself up for success.”
Sustainable energy throughout the day
Because of the transformation of the diet, Tomulka feels sustainable energy throughout the day.
“And now because of the diet changes, I’d say I do follow intuitive eating. I don’t like to be completely restrictive. There are times when I’m going to have a regular pizza and some sugar, but I feel the difference strongly.
“And you’re more aware too of what makes you feel good. Sustained energy, less anxiety and stress too. And I think when I am very conscious about getting enough protein, getting enough fiber, getting a variety of fruits and vegetables in my diet, I do feel it’s the energy that you get from your food too.”
The changing consumer
Definitely today we’re seeing a focus on protein and fiber as consumers are much more aware of the amount of protein that they should be getting, says Tomulka.
“Consumers are definitely more focused on getting a variety of protein into their diets. There’s also more of an awareness on the importance of fiber in our diets too, and how critical that is . . . There’s a greater emphasis and awareness on the importance of having both the protein and fiber in your diet. And so understanding where that fiber comes into, looking for more products with fiber, I think that’s been a big shift. And awareness of sugars too.”
Tomulka says a lot more consumers are aware of sugars to avoid and limit, and the negative impacts that sugar has in your body.
Challenges in starting up a business
She says there are two ways you can set up a food business. Either you get a co-manufacturer to produce your product, or you get into manufacturing the product yourself.
“And so one of the biggest challenges for us has been the manufacturing side. From the get-go, we have always manufactured our products, and I didn’t come from a manufacturing background, so it’s been a lot of learning along the way in terms of what’s required to build the business and then scale the business from that manufacturing side.
“That has been the challenge in terms of understanding food safety, how do you scale, what are the certifications needed? And then as we continue to grow the ability to scale, invest in new equipment, what is that track for sustainable growth in manufacturing? Those are definitely some of the largest hurdles we’ve faced in terms of the manufacturing side of the business.”
Future plans for the company
“For us, it is always staying true to the why. Why did we start this business in the first place? And it’s always been about the integrity of ingredients, so creating nutritious products with the highest quality ingredients,” adds Tomulka.
“We will never waver from that. And so the goal is to make healthier, better-for-you products more accessible across Canada, US, and internationally. We’ve had a lot of incredible growth in the past year with Costco . . . We have some exciting developments for this year and next year as well for increasing our distribution internationally as well. It is just continuing to grow and deliver better-for-you products locally and internationally, making healthier eating more accessible.”
While the company is based in Toronto, it moved its manufacturing facility to Niagara-on-the-Lake with a storefront in partnership with AM Ingredients during the summer.
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