2020

Loredana De Simone-Rybka developed San Elk out of equals parts necessity and love of good food.

Issues with food allergies throughout her life gave way to a strong interest in health and nutrition but when she and her husband, Arthur, found out their second son had eczema, she sought solutions in her cooking and steered the family’s diet to organic, natural food.

The more Loredana learned about diet, the more she discovered processed ingredients in foods that were claiming to be healthy. A cornerstone ingredient within her cooking repertoire was and is stock. The heart of a good soup, sauce or braise and a seasoning agent, Loredana couldn’t find a stock of quality that suited the family. She needed a powdered stock that was made with real food; no numbers or boosters, just dried and powdered organic ingredients to add a depth of flavour and nutrition to daily meals.

With more research and premium quality certified organic ingredients, she perfected a recipe for a vegetable stock powder made from a mix of dehydrated organic vegetables in her home kitchen.

She has now moved the operation out of the family kitchen and has also developed beef and chicken stock powders - made from dehydrated organic beef and chicken bones - and demand is growing. The added complexity of flavour and nutrition these powders add to everyday cooking is enticing a broader audience and she’s looking forward to expanding the range.