Page 42 - Food&Drink magazine July 2022

REARVIEW 5 The fast
Each issue we ask industry leaders about their working life. This month we talk to the CEO and founder of Openway Food Co., Andrew Loader.
1TELL US ABOUT YOUR CURRENT ROLE.
It’s quite different to my
previous 20 years in the FMCG industry. I am founder and CEO of Openway Food Co., one of Australia’s newest food companies that is building an integrated platform of brands and assets to enable “better for you” food options to thrive.
It is a collaboration of founders working together with a mission to make it easier for Australians to find, afford, and eat healthier and more sustainable products.
With products and brands that cover breakfast to healthy snacking and lifestyle powders, we are about Australian manufacturing and jobs, investing in stronger capabilities locally that support innovation and growth.
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global demand for Australian made products. We have just started in the US with two of our brands, achieving some great customer ranging.
I have made the mistake of being overly optimistic and thinking that good people will solve anything.
While I believe in people first, I have learnt through
many experiences when it is time for leadership to step in and help change the direction or course of events with clear and faster decisions.
Above that however, I have learnt the power of regular, clear, and concise communications. This builds a stronger culture and connection to employees on all levels of the business, and means we can celebrate our progress, recognise our efforts, and even in the tougher times be energised knowing we are all in it together.
Aim higher and follow your intuition. It is easy when you are younger to flow along and follow the direction or path that is being laid out before you, but if you feel there is more than can be done, don’t be afraid to challenge the status quo.
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WHAT WAS YOUR
5
I would say I would be very proud of having a portfolio of products that is driving towards carbon neutral or carbon positive over time. One of the key passion points for Openway Food Co. is to forge partnerships with great farmers using organic or regenerative practices to provide the best ingredients.
We want to leverage and collaborate with the best minds on the packaging sustainability challenge that we all face in this industry.
And on a supply chain front, looking at how to best minimise the impact of distance, both domestically and from the rest of the world, through investing in reducing shipping miles and carbon footprint with options like hydrogen shipping.
I would love to be part of collaboration between industry participants that realise this is not a competition or winning the IP game, but something that we should partner on more openlyforthegreatergood. ✷
BIGGEST MISTAKE AND WHAT DID YOU LEARN? Having been involved in many different business cycles, models, and markets, at times
WHAT IS ONE GOAL
YOU STILL WANT
TO ACHIEVE?
I find it hard to filter it down to just one goal because there are more and more opportunities for good business to also do good as the world around us evolves faster than ever.
WHAT HAS BEEN YOUR
GREATEST ACHIEVEMENT TO DATE? Surviving the first 12 months! The landscape we started in has changed dramatically, navigating Covid lockdowns, supply chain chaos, natural disasters, and now significant inflation. Starting something new under those conditions added a higher degree of difficulty than any of us anticipated. That said, we are proud of the steps we have taken so far to build our new business model, create our values and also land some great innovation.
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✷ ADVERTISER LIST ADM Australia 15
FlexCAM Cover Foodbank Australia 07 GS1 Australia 05 Hawkins Watts Australia 25 Heat and Control 02 Mettler-Toledo 17 MulitpackFoods 19 Open IIoT Group 29 Ozkor 44 Radial Design 33 RMR Process 09 Roxset Australia 37 Tecpro 21 Treotham Automation 33 Swisslog 31 Visy Technology Systems 11
The exciting part of what we are doing is the really strong
WHAT WOULD YOU
TELL YOUR 25-YEAR- OLD SELF?
42 | Food&Drink business | July 2022 | www.foodanddrinkbusiness.com.au