Interview With Nimisha of Nim’s Fruit Crisps
Nim’s Fruit Crisps are a healthy, air dried fruit snack that we really enjoy so we thought we would get in touch with the company’s founder Nimisha and ask her some questions about the crisps, her inspiration, and more!
What inspired you to start Nim’s Fruit Crisps?
Nim: I used to own a coffee shop which was frequented by mothers and children from a school opposite and there was a constant battle between the two regarding snack for school and after school. I wanted to stock healthy snack that children WANTED to eat and these were few and far between. So my quest to stock healthy snacks at the coffee shop and for my own daughter began. The only thing I came across was a crispy piece of freeze dried apple that was artificially flavoured with blueberry. Freeze dried sounds like such an artificial process and the taste reflected the artificial flavour. But I love the idea of crunchy/crispy fruit so I began to look into how I can make fruit crispy. The most important things for me were, in order of importance: great taste, retain nutritional content as much as possible and look good.
Which flavour is your personal favourite?
Nim: Orange. Not one for everyone and it does very much divide opinion but I love it!
Do you feel that your fruit crisps are a healthier alternative to ordinary crisps on the market?
Nim: Absolutely. When my daughter was younger, she once brought home a well known brand of fruit puree pouch which was marketed as a healthy product. But actually it had been pasteurised to such an extent that there was no natural goodness left in there. Just because you use fruit to create a product doesn’t mean it’s healthy! It needs to be processed in such a way that it retains as much natural goodness as possible. All our Air Dried fruit and vegetable crisps are made using a unique process which retains much of the colour, vitamin C, fibre (because we leave the skin and core in tact on all our produce except pineapple) and the authentic taste of the fruit or vegetable it was made of. SO a pineapple crisp will taste of pineapple and orange of orange… Each pack of Nim’s is also licensed by the Department of Health as being 1 Of Your 5 A Day.
What do you think about the current state of healthy eating in the UK?
Nim: I think we are getting much much better. I think consumers are more informed, more savvy if you like but there is still a long way to go in terms of simplifying on pack messages so that consumers are informed in manner that is quick and easy to understand to enable them to compare nutritional information on products. I don’t believe it is always down to the authorities to do all the work though, we need to educate ourselves and our children. Having said that, I find children are far more knowledgeable than we perhaps give them credit for and sometimes they are educating the parents.
Do you think the government is doing enough to promote healthy eating, both in schools and across the public?
Nim: As I said above, I don’t think it’s ALL up to the authorities. We have to take responsibility for our actions and the choices we make. The government should continue to find ways of informing and updating us without confusing us!
Some people may be concerned about the higher levels of sugar in fruit crisps, how would you respond?
Nim: I can totally understand their concern and like anything else in life, moderation is the key. However, there is a big difference between naturally occurring sugars and added sugars. We can’t have a diet without any sugar whatsoever so we need to choose foods and snacks with naturally occurring sugars wherever possible. There is a lot of scare mongering about natural sugars and I think this is the next thing we need to make consumers aware of – the difference between naturally occurring and added sugars.
Currently you only sell in independent retailers, do you see your product becoming more widely available in the future?
Nim: Absolutely! I have gone to great lengths and expense to set up a production factory capable of making millions of packs of crisps. My aim is to make Nim’s easily available and an affordable, everyday snack – not a luxury item. The only way to reach the masses it to distribute through all the channels possible
Where do you source your ingredients from?
Nim: As much as possible I source locally. However, due to the nature of fresh produce and seasonality, I do sometimes have to buy from Europe and of course fruits such as pineapple, oranges, kiwis and melons which can’t be grown here are imported from South America and Europe.
As your product has been approved by the Vegan Society, what are your own views on vegetarianism and veganism?
Nim: I am and always have been a vegetarian. This is not because of ethical reasons but simply because I don’t like the idea of eating flesh of any kind. I have no problem with people eating meat, I cook meat and have run a restaurant where I cooked everything on the menu. However, I think it’s great that people are looking to become healthier and looking to alternative diets. I quite like the idea of a flexitarian. I came across this term when I was exhibiting at a trade show in Belgium. I’m sure you know that that means you alternate between eating meat and fish and vegetable and I think that seems like a really good way of ensuring that you are getting a balanced diet.
On a side note, Friendly and Free is an advocate of promoting cruelty free products. How do you feel about animal testing in the current market?
Nim: I had a discussion about this with my daughter last week when she asked me why makeup is tested on animals first. I can’t for the life of me imagine what animals go through for the sake of vanity but if we are able to buy products which are made without testing on animals then why on earth do we allow testing on animals at all? Well I say that but I guess it’s about costs and our ever increasing need for cheaper products.
Finally, what is your favourite animal?
Nim: I inadvertently became the owner of baby tortoise about 5 years ago. I never thought I would have a reptile as a pet but I absolutely love him to bits! He’s called Lettuce and I marvel at how he seems to know my voice and reacts to me when I go up to feed him. It’s great that tortoises usually have a long life span because I couldn’t imagine life without him and he will most certainly outlive me!
We would like to give a big thanks to Nimisha for answering our questions, you can find out more about Nim’s Fruit Crisps at nimsfruitcrisps.com.
