SCRATCH MADE UAE based entrepreneur Natasha Stephenson is pioneering the country’s first all-natural food company
t wasn’t until a friend suggested that she should cut down on dairy that Natasha Stephenson learned she had a food intolerance. The health conscious yogi, had grown up with eczema and despite the constant irritation of the skin condition, she learned to manage it. After hearing about the adverse affects of dairy for the skin, she also wondered if her gluten rich diet could be feeding her eczema and so she decided to completely cut out both from her diet. “I tried it for over a month and felt superb. My rashes went away and my energy was through the roof. I changed my life completely,” explained Stephenson. However her weekly shop from then on proved to be a challenge. “I just moved to Dubai from London where it was really easy to get gluten and diary free products but in Dubai I struggled to find them. Sure, I could find imported versions with a long shelf life but that wasn’t as healthy or as tasty as the regular versions,” she says. But what was worse for the self-confessed dessert junkie was that she couldn’t find any gluten or dairy free homemade desserts. These discoveries spawned a new business idea for the entrepreneur who previously owned Rawr yoga studios - to start her own organic all-natural food manufacturing company in Dubai to supply local retailers. “This is how Muncherie was born,” she says. “My mission
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was to create delicious alternatives, free of these sensitivities, as well being clean, nutritious and to be accessible and affordable to everyone.” The Estonian native says that living gluten and dairy free is a lifestyle rather than a diet for her. “It comes naturally to me now and no longer means depriving yourself of something scrumptious.” In less than a year since her company launched, the 33-yearold entrepreneur has produced an extensive line of organic raw products - which includes everything from chili flavoured kale chips to dairy free almond milk and coffee drinks to probiotic coconut yoghurts and protein brownies - in over 40 stores across the emirates including Spinneys, Milk and Honey, Jones the Grocer, Waitrose and Choithrams. “It started with me making desserts at home for myself and then it evolved into proper food manufacturing - everything is raw, we’re not cooking anything,” she says. Eating a bowl of Muncherie’s kale chips is the equivalent to “eating a huge bowl of salad”, according to Stephenson as all of the nutrients are retained. “All of our drinks are cold pressed and our kale chips are dehydrated below 46 degrees to retain the nutrients, only water is lost in the process,” she adds. And Muncherie’s dessert range is equally guilt-free, using only Non-GMO, Paleo and unprocessed ingredients.