• About
  • Contact
  • Testimonials
  • Newsletter
  • More
    • Demographics & Advertising Rates
    • Terms & Conditions
Monday, March 27, 2023
No Result
View All Result
California Business Journal
  • Front Page
  • Business
  • Finance
  • People
  • Featured
  • Opinion
  • Technology
  • Law
  • News
  • Food
  • Art & Culture
  • Human Interest
  • Education
  • Insurance
  • Real Estate
  • Health & Fitness
California Business Journal
Russ Kremer3

TRUE STORY

After a five-year quest to learn about how the world’s very best foods are sourced and manufactured, Phil Gatto launched one of the most innovative organic food companies in the U.S.

by Rick Weinberg, Editor in Chief, California Business Journal
A A
Share on FacebookShare on Twitter

BY RICK WEINBERG, CALIFORNIA BUSINESS JOURNAL

When Phil Gatto was President of Columbus Foods in Northern California, he was satisfied with the quality of food the company was producing. But he wanted to do more – he felt he could do more – when it came to the quality of the food and the source of it.

He became obsessed with producing the best products in the marketplace – a process that would start with raising the animals the proper way: no hormones, antibiotics, enhancers, synthetic nitrates or nitrites; feeding them an all-vegetarian, natural diet; and allowing them to live in stress-free open spaces where they nest and explore on local, sustainable farms and ranches.

“I realized that I hadn’t done my best work up to that point when it came to the quality of food we were producing,” Gatto says. “I felt there was more to do.”

This passion began a five-year quest that took him through small European towns in Italy and France as well as America’s heartland in the Midwest to learn the best methods to raise animals and everything else it took to understand the complete supply chain from soil to sale.

Phil Gatto, True Story Foods

After five years, Gatto came up with a new business model and the right people to work with – people who had the same beliefs as he did when it came to producing the best quality natural foods. Gatto named the new company True Story Foods because “we love telling the story of our company,” he says.

Gatto found ideal primary partners in Russ Kremer and Rob Engelhart. Kremer, who has been featured on PBS for the innovative and natural manner in which he raises his hogs, is a fifth generation farmer with a 150-acre farm in the Missouri Ozarks who rears heirloom-breed hogs without antibiotics, added hormones or growth enhancers in wide open spaces where they’re free to roam and explore.

Gatto spent two years watching and learning Kremer’s sustainable methods and traveling throughout the Midwest with him to see how other farmers raised their animals and sourced their food.

“It was an incredible, enlightening experience,” Gatto says. “I needed to go and see Russ’s farm to truly learn the proper way to raise and harvest the very best meats. It became my obsession to learn everything I could about this.”

As fate would have it, shortly after returning from Kremer’s farm, Gatto walked into Red’s Java House in San Francisco and sat down at the counter for breakfast. Over his shoulder, he overheard the conversation of two men discussing the future of food and how to elevate the quality of it. Gatto turned around and it was Engelhart, a third-generation artisan food producer and President of Engelhart Gourmet Foods whom Gatto had known yet had not seen in several years.

That was the day that True Story Foods advanced another level.

That morning at breakfast, after Gatto had told Engelhart about his experience at Kremer’s Midwest farm, he said, “You have a factory, Russ has the hogs, let’s see if we can bring this community together.”

They did just that. Today, True Story Foods is thriving and is not only reinventing the industry by producing the country’s finest organic chicken, turkey, pork and beef products, but it is emerging as the model of what the industry should be.

Gatto and Russ Kremer

Gatto has been involved in food for virtually his entire life. His father and uncle – his mentors – were bartenders until the age of 40, when they purchased a salami company in 1957 in San Francisco. Phil worked there as a child, performing all kinds of chores. His primary takeaway: never compromise on quality, always raise the bar for quality improvement, always take care of your people and be fair, do it right or don’t do it at all, love what you do and be the best at it.

After his father and uncle retired, Gatto grabbed the torch and took over as President – “to keep the company in the family,” he says. But as time passed and Gatto became obsessed with why certain foods taste better than others, his career swerved to a new and different direction.

He decided to return to America’s golden food age of the 1950s, when European immigrants were producing the country’s finest foods naturally, organically and without hormones, antibiotics and enhancers.

“We’re going back in history to the natural, organic and traditional way crops were raised 60 years ago,” Gatto says. “When you go back to those traditions, you get a better quality of product. Fifty or 60 years ago, we didn’t have to talk about natural or organic because that’s the way they were. This is not new. We’re just going back to the traditional way – before the American food industry became over processed.”

During his five-year journey to Europe and America’s heartland, Gatto discovered that the key to making wonderful food products “is sourcing the finest raw materials and understanding what differentiates these products,” he says. “What we’ve done at True Story Foods is follow the products through the supply chain to gain an appreciation for the subtle differences.

“When you get into artesian products, you start paying more attention to the ingredients,” he adds. “When you start to delve deep into the supply chain and connect with farmers and growers that’s when you get to that attention to detail and learn all the little nuances that enhance the final product. That’s the direction we’ve taken.

“Our goal,” he concludes, “was to take everything to the highest level. If you create the ideal environment, it creates the best products, period.”

 

 

 

True Story Foods

TrueStoryFoods.com

ADVERTISEMENT

hi@truestoryfoods.com

888-277-1171

Tags: AdvancedAmericaAmericanantibioticsbest quality natural foodsCaliforniadietenhancersEuropeanexplorefoodhormonesimmigrantslocalmarketplacenaturalnestNorthernorganicPhil GattoranchesRob EngelhartRuss KremerSan Franciscosustainablesustainable farmssynthetic nitratesTrue Story Foodsvegetarian
ADVERTISEMENT
Rick Weinberg, Editor in Chief, California Business Journal

Rick Weinberg, Editor in Chief, California Business Journal

Rick Weinberg is Editor-in-Chief at California Business Journal. He is a well-known writer, reporter and on-air talent who has worked for the New York Times, FOX and ESPN. He launched California Business Journal to focus on California businesses and business professionals as well as California business news and information. Contact: Rick@CalBizJournal.com / 949-648-3815

Related Posts

Elise Thomas, Founder of The Cookie Co.
Cookie Monster
technologies for different wastewater treatments
See how these technologies are used for different wastewater treatments
advertisement
ADVERTISEMENT

CBJ Newsletter

Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Instagram LinkedIn

Advertise With CBJ

Contact Rick@CalBizJournal.com

CBJ Rates and Demographics

Job Postings

CEO Wanted


Requirements: BS/BA + 2yrs of Business Managing Experience

Mail Resume: Grand Life, Inc. 14647 Northam St. La Mirada, CA 90638.

$114,754/year

ADVERTISEMENT
1REALTOUR-SAN DIEGO-WEB DESIGN
Facebook Twitter LinkedIn LinkedIn Instagram Youtube
C B J   LOGO  SVG-01
  • About
  • Contact California Business Journal
  • Testimonials
  • Demographics & Advertising Rates
  • Terms & Conditions

Categories

  • Art & Culture
  • Business
  • California Hotel Listings
  • Daily Updates
  • Editor's Choice
  • Education
  • Featured
  • Finance
  • Food & Dining
  • Health & Fitness
  • Human Interest
  • Insurance
  • Law
  • Lawyers
  • Marketing
  • Medical
  • News
  • Newsletter
  • Opinion
  • People
  • Popular
  • Real Estate
  • Social Media
  • Technology
  • Uncategorized

CBJ Partner Firebrand Media

Laguna Beach Independent Newspaper
 Laguna Beach City Guide
 Newport Beach Independent Newspaper
Newport Beach Country Club Magazine
  Montage Magazine
 Omni Escapes Hotel Magazine
 Bespoke Concierge New York
 Evans Hotels
 Laguna Beach Magazine
 On The Menu Laguna Beach
 Newport Beach Magazine
Coastal Real Estate Guide (NB,LB, CDM)
Monarch Beach Resort Magazine
 Pacific Coast Magazine (SoCal)
Sea Island Life Magazine
Salamander Hotel & Resorts Magazine
 View our entire portfolio

 

Most Viewed

  • Gavel, scales of justice and law books

    Lawsuit Basics: How Much Does It Cost to Sue Someone?

    0 shares
    Share 0 Tweet 0
  • Investigation: Can TriumphFX Take Your Money?

    0 shares
    Share 0 Tweet 0
  • The Impact of Covid: Racing to Buy Second Citizenships

    3 shares
    Share 0 Tweet 0
  • What to Do When an Online Casino Refuses to Pay Out Your Winnings

    0 shares
    Share 0 Tweet 0
  • The Truth About Temu: Where Is It From?

    0 shares
    Share 0 Tweet 0
  • Top 5 Flavors On Elf Bar BC5000 Review

    0 shares
    Share 0 Tweet 0
  • NFL Paychecks: How Do NFL Players Get Paid?

    0 shares
    Share 0 Tweet 0
  • Temu’s New Shipping Policy Is A Smashing Hit For Shoppers All Over the Country

    0 shares
    Share 0 Tweet 0
  • Five Reasons Why The Government Does Not Like Bitcoin

    0 shares
    Share 0 Tweet 0
  • How to Start a Telecommunication Business: A Step-By-Step Guide

    0 shares
    Share 0 Tweet 0

Latest Articles

4 Law Firm Tips that Help Grow Your Practice Even in Tough Times

4 Law Firm Tips that Help Grow Your Practice Even in Tough Times

Understanding Your Legal Options After a Truck Accident: 7 Tips to Know

Understanding Your Legal Options After a Truck Accident: 7 Tips to Know

Effective Ways to Make Money in Real Estate

Effective Ways to Make Money in Real Estate

Factors to Consider While Choosing the Right Online Casino Site

Factors to Consider While Choosing the Right Online Casino Site

Crypto Betting Security: How to Keep Your Cryptocurrencies Safe While Betting Online

Crypto Betting Security: How to Keep Your Cryptocurrencies Safe While Betting Online

Can You Trust Temu on Facebook and its Referral Games and Rewards?

Can You Trust Temu on Facebook and its Referral Games and Rewards?

Shoe Packing Isn’t as Easy as You Think on Moving Day

Shoe Packing Isn’t as Easy as You Think on Moving Day

How to Prepare Your Home for a Successful Sale

How to Prepare Your Home for a Successful Sale

Is It Possible to Track Facebook Messenger Secretly?

Is It Possible to Track Facebook Messenger Secretly?

How To Date Over 60 Successfully?

How To Date Over 60 Successfully?

California Business Journal | California Business News, California News Media, California business articles | Orange County, Los Angeles, San Diego, Inland Empire, Northern California, San Francisco | Huntington Beach CA 92649 | (949) 648-3815
ALL RIGHTS RESERVED BY CALIFORNIA BUSINESS JOURNAL.
Site Design by 1REALTOUR

No Result
View All Result
  • Front Page
  • Business
  • Finance
  • People
  • Featured
  • Opinion
  • Technology
  • Law
  • News
  • Food
  • Art & Culture
  • Human Interest
  • Education
  • Insurance
  • Real Estate
  • Health & Fitness

California Business Journal | California Business News, California News Media, California business articles | Orange County, Los Angeles, San Diego, Inland Empire, Northern California, San Francisco | Huntington Beach CA 92649 | (949) 648-3815
ALL RIGHTS RESERVED BY CALIFORNIA BUSINESS JOURNAL.
Site Design by 1REALTOUR