Junkless

The story began a number of years ago with a grocery shopping experience. Ernie's 12-year old son Michael and him were browsing through the freezer case of a local grocery store in Portage, Michigan. He picked up a frozen entrée package with a mouthwatering picture of what appeared to be a chicken dinner. With a curious mind as he read the side panel where the ingredient list was, he innocently asked Ernie – “are these foods?” The unfortunate reality was that the ingredient list had well over 50 “things,” most unpronounceable and unrecognizable… even to Ernie as an adult!

Ernie couldn’t answer his simple question despite years working as a marketing insider for various packaged food companies. Frustrated, Ernie consulted with one of his colleagues. It was then that he realized most of all these processed foods are loaded with additives as a result of nutrients lost from heavy processing. Further, Big Food companies have adopted incredibly innovative food science techniques to lower costs while driving higher tastes. As an example, manufacturers have replaced wholesome ingredients like real strawberries and real sugar with cheaper alternatives like apple pieces infused with strawberry flavor and sweetened with high fructose corn syrup. The result is a Frankenstein-like ingredient list of “edible food-like substances!”

Ernie's frustrations in search of more wholesome packaged foods made with trusted and simple ingredients led to the birth of the JUNKLESS® idea. He believed there was a better way to make snacks and treats that the whole family would love. Since then, he has been on a mission to provide simpler alternatives for breakfast and snack food products. His solution is to make each snack with only eight or fewer familiar “kitchen pantry” type ingredients. Ernie believes simplicity will make shopping easier for concerned moms and dads. They no longer need to waste valuable time researching specific ingredients in order to know if they are healthy or not. More importantly, his kids can even read the label – because they use real food!