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Below you'll find a concise summary of our conversation with Ward Grasveld. You can listen to the full episode via Spotify, SoundCloud Apple Podcasts.
About Ward Grasveld and 5th Season
Ward Grasveld is Dutch, co-founder and commercial director of 5th Season. This snack brand offers freeze-dried fruit, a tasty and more nutritious snack that we're happy to include in our JustBite range.
With years of experience at big multinationals like Unilever, Coca-Cola, and more, Ward launched 5th Season last year together with 6 co-founders.
After 2.5 years of testing, they brought 5th Season to market with a mission to make fruit more accessible. The underlying themes of wellbeing and convenience form the foundation of the idea behind 5th Season, since fruit — alongside chocolate — is the most snacked-on product in the world. The catch is that fruit isn't always easy to grab on the go; you don't always have the time or means to peel a pineapple while you're out and about, for example. That's the gap 5th Season wants to fill with a more nutritious answer. By offering a fruit snack that's both more nutritious and enjoyable, while keeping the fruit's original nutritional value intact.
More sustainable snacking during a fifth season
Fruit is very much a seasonal product, and the supply isn't equally abundant or ripe all year round. 5th Season makes sure fruit is available for everyone, all year long, with an ideal flavour. A fifth season, so to speak.
The packaging of 5th Season's delicious fruit isn't sustainable yet, but that's something they're working hard on. The more sustainable side of their product lies in the fact that their snacks are 100% pure. The only thing you'll find in 5th Season's snacks is 100% fruit, and nothing else.
By freeze-drying the fruit, the moisture is removed. Yet 95% of the fruit's vitamins and minerals are preserved, keeping the same nutritional value as whole, fresh fruit. The result is a crunchy snack with an 18-month shelf life.
On top of that, 5th Season's fruit snacks help fight food waste. They source the fruit straight from the origin and process it immediately, so no fruit ever goes to waste.
Because of Covid, many companies are now offering fresh fruit in the office less often, since they'd have to throw away far too much with fewer people coming in every day. Hygiene is another reason a fruit bowl at the office has become less popular — after all, you never know how many hands have touched your piece of fruit already.
5th Season still offers 100% fruit, with all the same benefits, but in a hygienic little bag.
Where does the fruit come from?
5th Season sources its fruit from all over the world, always selecting first and foremost on quality. To champion fair trade as much as possible, they partner with suppliers who promote it. They also have a partnership with Farm Africa, a foundation that helps farmers in East Africa not just survive, but grow. That's how all the strawberries in 5th Season's bags come from East African farmers, through the partnership with Farm Africa.
The benefits of freeze-drying
Freeze-drying isn't a new process — it's been around for a while. Herbs, for instance, have long been freeze-dried.
So how does it actually work? 5th Season picks the fruit at peak ripeness. It's then cut into the desired pieces and rapidly cooled to -35°C, drawing out all the moisture in a very short time. After that, the fruit is gently warmed in a vacuum to just below 38°C, so all the vitamins and minerals stay intact. The pieces are then packed into small bags, becoming a crunchy snack with all the benefits of fresh fruit.
The big benefits of freeze-drying:
- More than 90% of vitamins and minerals are preserved
- The fruit's colour and aroma are preserved
- The fruit gets a crunchy bite
- The flavour is preserved, so there's no need to add extra natural sugars or syrups.
Pure nature, on the go
People are on the move more and more, with less time to prepare fresh fruit or a more nutritious snack for themselves. Thanks to 5th Season's snacks, you can still get enough fruit in your day. They're ideal on the go, in a lunchbox, at breakfast, or as a topping on a smoothie. One bag gives you one of your daily recommended 2 to 3 pieces of fruit. And the ingredients are 100% pure nature — the strawberry bag, for example, contains nothing but strawberries.
They contain no unnecessary additives and a nice fibre content. That's what makes these snacks such a perfect fit for the JustBite range.
4 flavours for young and old
5th Season's fruit snacks come in 4 flavours and 6 varieties, offering a more nutritious alternative to both fresh fruit and less wholesome crisps. Thanks to their crunchy bite, they give you that crisp-like vibe while you're actually enjoying delicious, more nutritious fruit. Loved by adults and kids alike, who get to discover just how tasty fruit can be.
There are 3 organic varieties:
- Pineapple
- Fruit Salad with banana, apple and strawberry
- Mango and raspberry
And 3 non-organic varieties
- Strawberry
- Pineapple
- Fruit Salad with banana, apple and strawberry
There's currently a new flavour in the pipeline, likely launching later this year! An all-time crowd favourite, Banana-Blueberry.
Just like JustBite, 5th Season wants to help you be more mindful of what you consume and encourage you to think about what's actually in the products you eat.
5th Season's snacks are available in all JustBite boxes, so members will get to discover these delicious flavours again every single month.