Exec Edge hosted a fireside chat at the ICR Conference 2025 with John Foraker, Chief Executive Officer and co-founder of Once Upon A Farm. The in-person interview was joined by Editor-at-Large Jarrett Banks and they discussed how the company scales its business while preserving clean standards and sustainability, what to expect from the brand on 2025, and more.
Watch the full recording:
About John Foraker
John Foraker is co-founder and CEO of leading children’s nutrition company Once Upon A Farm. While the father of four was raised in a conventional farming family, he went onto study agricultural economics at UC Davis, attend business school at UC Berkeley, and become fixated on consumer goods and the natural, organic food movement. After helping launch an infused oil company that invested in Annie’s, which was at the time a natural mac and cheese company, John became CEO of the company and shifted its mission toward bringing organic goods from niche to mainstream in the U.S. After the company went public, Annie’s was acquired by General Mills, where John consulted for the company’s organic food companies.
Eager to invest in another food company, he discovered Once Upon a Farm, which was alone in its mission to distribute fresh, organic baby food. He signed on as co-founder in 2017, continuing to drive purpose around healthy and clean food access for babies. In the last 5 years, Once Upon a Farm has been groundbreaking in the industry, expanding the portfolio to exceed expectations in delivering nutritional superiority in meals and snacks for babies to big kids across the store and with their own robust DTC subscription service. The company, now at $300MM retail run rate across all channels, leads in the creation of fresh snacking sets at key retailers, has recently launched a freshly frozen line of plant rich meals, and continues to increase expectations in the baby aisle with their own coolers aiding in their mission of driving systemic improvements in childhood nutrition.
About Once Upon A Farm
At Once Upon a Farm, Farm-Fresh Tastes Grow Here™. We’re on a greater mission in providing organic, crave-worthy, snacks and meals for children of all ages. Our delicious and thoughtful recipes are crafted with only the best organic ingredients – whole fruits and veggies picked, then cold-pressed (our pouches), freshly frozen (our meals) to perfection, refrigerated oat bars, and our new line of farm fresh tasting pantry snacks – to support growing kids at every stage and milestone. All of our products are organic, non-GMO project verified, contain no added sugar, and are free from artificial flavors, colors, and preservatives – just simple, real, nutritious food your entire family will love.