Age: 34
Evan Delahanty is seeking to use his fledgling packaged food business to improve communities, both in the Amazon rainforest and in northeast Ohio.
He created Peaceful Fruits, a company that makes natural snacks from whole fruits, after serving in the Peace Corps in Suriname, a small country in South America. “I wanted to stay connected with the folks down there, and I zeroed in on sustainable foods, especially the superfood acai,” says Delahanty, who is 34.
The business was featured on the TV show “Shark Tank,” and although it failed to secure an investment, the appearance helped the company obtain some traditional financing and validated its community-centric model, Delahanty says.
Peaceful Fruits recently opened a production facility near Akron, Ohio, that focuses on hiring people in the area with disabilities. Although the company has not yet become profitable, Delahanty thinks it could break even in about a year. “We are still investing heavily in growth for as long as we can afford it,” he says.
Delahanty says the company’s innovative approach to economic development and sustainable production has presented challenges. “We’re ultra clean label, ultra minimally processed, and there’s not a lot of people to turn to who have done this before,” he says. “We’ve had to blaze our own trail to a degree.”
Delahanty says he hopes the company is acquired by a larger enterprise at some point that can preserve its way of doing business. “Ultimately my goal is to show the world that social enterprise is good business, that you can do things the right way for the community and make money,” he says.
Mark Hamstra is a regular contributor to Specialty Food Magazine.
Photo Credit: Whatnot Shop Photography
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