This NUS Business student prevented more than 180kg of food loss in a year by repurposing them into dog snacks

In one line, what do you do and what is your most significant achievement?

We have prevented more than 180kg of food loss in a year by repurposing them into dog snacks and we have sold 230 packs of our new dog snack line within one month of launching it.

Who are you and what business did you start?

I'm a freshman at NUS Business School and I'm very passionate about the agri-food technological scene. I started a pet snacks start-up which repurposes surplus food (food manufactured in excess and could not be sold) into dog snacks. Our snacks promote coat growth and heart health as they are rich in Omega-3 from the salmon fish skin which is the snacks main ingredient. The salmon fish skin is one of the surplus ingredients we have rescued from local food manufacturers.

What's your backstory?

Pawfoo started from an agri-food business case competition, The Hungry Games, organised by StartupX and Enterprise SG. I joined the competition alone, grouped with a bunch of strangers, and we decided to tackle IRVINS food problem statement. IRVINS had a lot of off-specification surplus fish skin and potato which they did not know what to do with, so one of my team members suggested the idea to upcycle them into pet food. Through the research and development process, we got advice from vets and pet owners and I experimented with various dog and cat food recipes. We managed to come up with a pet snack that received great feedback from both dog and cats and pitched it and won the Hungry Games Competition. My team and I felt that there was great potential in our idea to serve animals while saving the earth hence we decided to take it further.

What led you to specialise in your industry?

My interest in agrifood technology started when I was Year 1 in polytechnic. I explicitly remember asking myself then what industries will be evergreen and agrifood was one of the industries that came to mind. I mean, who can live on this earth without eating right. Besides food being a necessity, I was drawn to the agrifood industry because I realised disruptive food innovation was still at its early development stages and I wanted to be part of its growth. Then, vertical agriculture farming, cell-based meats production, and food waste upcycling technologies were very new. I also really love food and cooking in general so I think being in this industry has been a lot of fun. My passion for agrifood techinnovation has motivated me to pursue food technology modules when I was in Polytechnic and entrepreneurial programmes such as the Global Entrepreneurial Internship Programme (basically the NOC equivalent for poly students).

How did you spend your First 100 Days of launching your business?

The first 100 days was honestly a blur. It was a mix of frantic baking, packing the snacks, tracking orders, and delivering the snacks. After all, it was the first time my team and I were trying out our operating system. I did not expect everything to go smoothly nor in order.

We got our frst 100 customers through word of mouth via friends and family and boothing events.

Since launch, what has worked to attract and retain partnerships/customers?

To be honest, we are still trying to figure out how to retain partnerships and customers for the long haul as we are still at the beginning stages of getting partnerships and customers. But I would say that a good product that solves the consumers problem and an even better customer service would attain loyalty from customers. And for partnerships, building a good relationship with the person/business you are partnering with is key to retaining long-term partnerships.

What were the biggest challenges you faced and how have you overcome them?

At some points of running this business I felt at the brink of burning out. Baking at scale is a very laborious process and often times I question whether it was all worth my time and energy. And there were many times where I felt that I was not sure what I was doing in the business and felt lost. What helped me was finding more people to help me with baking and having committed team mates that had complementary skillsets and could navigate the uncertainties of our business together. END

How are you doing today and what does the future look like?

We are in the midst of getting grants from DBS and YAC to fund our plans for 2023. We have plans to ramp up our brand awareness initiatives like taking part in more boothing events, co-branding partnerships, increasing our advertising efforts and displaying our products in more retailers. We also have plans to improve our current products from the feedback we have received and also increase our product line.