I met Stephanie Baudhuin, founder of Colorado Crummies, at the local farmers market here in Loveland, Colorado this fall. I was excited to find out that her homemade meat crumble alternative was made with 100% whole plant ingredients and no additives or fillers. We sat down with Stephanie to ask some questions about the concept and her plans for the future!

TPBW: First things first – what are Colorado Crummies? How are they different from the meat alternatives we can now find in the meat section in many grocery stores?

Stephanie: Crummies is a plant-based meat alternative product that behaves like ground meat in any recipe, but all our 7 simple ingredients come from the land and not the lab.

We created this product to center around the versatility of meat in a recipe rather than having it look and taste like meat. We leave that to meat itself. Our product is free from fillers, chemicals and any other funny stuff you may find on the ingredient list of some of the “other guy’s” products.

Our ingredients taste great by themselves but also take on seasoning exceptionally well in any recipe.

How would you describe the target customer for Colorado Crummies?

Crummies wants to focus on spreading the word about plant-based eating. We are here for the vegans and vegetarians but also the reducetarians or veggie curious folks. Perhaps a drastic change in your diet isn’t realistic for you… small steps can still make a huge difference environmentally and in your body.

You mentioned you started to eat plant-based in 2017… What inspired you to evolve your plant-based journey from a personal lifestyle choice into an entrepreneurial venture?

It may sound cheesy but the movie Okja on Netflix was the final pull for me to change my way of eating. I live in a county in Colorado where animal agriculture is everywhere and I pass at least 5 large cattle feed lots on a regular basis. This along with the movie really changed my way of thinking as far as commercialized meat. I was done that night and haven’t regretted it ONE BITE:)

It took me a while, even after Crummies made its first sale in May 2019, to consider myself an entrepreneur. I had made a career in print and graphic design but always felt like I could do more. I watched my husband run a successful small business for years and was always so impressed and even envious at times. It wasn’t until I joined an entrepreneurship accelerator program called EforAll that it finally sunk in: I’M REALLY DOING THIS!

I left my full time job in February of 2020 and feel more fulfilled on a daily basis than I ever imagined possible. This is my craft, my passion and I am so proud to be a small business owner, especially in this exciting Vegan landscape.

For us lucky people living in Colorado – where can we find your products on shelves right now? Do you have plans to expand?

We are always looking to expand. Currently we are available at Hays Market, NudeFoods Market as well as the Mountain Ave Market. You can also order Crummies on our website and we will deliver it to your front porch. We are in talks with Alfalfas and Lucky’s markets as well. So stay tuned!

Are there any resources or connections you are looking for that could help grow your business?

My three asks to anyone reading who is interested in our concept and wants to help us grow:

• Please connect me with any contacts in both the grocery and restaurant space that may be interested in a chemical free plant-based meat alternative like Crummies.
• Please follow me on social media, @crummiesco
• And finally, support small and local businesses, there is no telling the lasting effects of this pandemic and it is up to everyone to support each other.