Small Business: How LittleOak is bucking the baby formula trend

This is one of my favorite questions. Goat’s milk is closer to human breast milk than any other mammalian milk available. So I always talk about a spectrum. You have human breast milk on one end, whale milk, polar bear milk, goat milk, and on the other end you have cow’s milk. And for cow’s milk to mimic anything that looks, tastes, and feels like human breast milk, it requires a significant amount of processing and synthetics.

Whereas goat’s milk is, in terms of taste, texture and nutritional profile, significantly closer. There are natural probiotics, the protein profile is very similar, the lipid profile aids digestion and there is natural taurine. Our formula contains up to 25% fewer synthetic ingredients than other formulas.

Why are you trying to enter the US market?

We were one of those companies where, from the start, I knew I wanted to turn things around. But we were one of the companies that never wanted to set up in China. You know, if you think back five or ten years ago, everyone was making baby formula for China. I decided early on that I didn’t want to go to China, having lived there and knowing the regulatory environment and how it can change very quickly.

I was well aware of the poor quality of infant formula in the United States. It’s a huge market, which is why we’ve always seen the US as the jewel in our crown because it was a clear need. Five to ten years ago, every one of their infant formulas contained corn syrup and maltodextrin, two horrible ingredients that no one should consume, let alone a two-day-old baby. We then took the necessary steps to obtain full FDA approval, which in itself is a huge undertaking.

We are working closely with MPI to achieve this, because if we achieve this we will be the first New Zealand and, dare I say, the first ex-New Zealand company to achieve FDA approval. So it’s quite exciting. We are working very hard on it, although we still have a way to go. We’re in the first third, and there’s still half, two thirds to go.

How are your children involved in the business?

They both played an integral role in every element of the business, from viewing logos to tasting products. They still use Formula Stage Three in their smoothies every day because it acts like a protein powder for them and they love the taste. They’ve always been involved, it’s incredibly rewarding to have developed something for my child and then see them get involved. And now I just had another baby, so it’s wonderful to see my “other baby”, helping me feed my little surprise baby.

What advice would you give to other budding entrepreneurs?

I think you really need to protect your dream. You know there are going to be so many naysayers in your journey, and you have to, if you’re passionate about it and you know you’re committed to it, stay the course and keep moving forward, no matter what. what someone tells you.

Tom Raynel is a multimedia business reporter for the Herald, covering small business and retail.