Today we’d like to introduce you to Valeria, from Peel Soft Serve.
Valeria, can you briefly walk us through your story – how you started and how you got to where you are today.
The idea for Peel Soft Serve started after I took a trip to Indonesia back in 2016 with some friends. We were in Bali for a few weeks exploring, eating, and learning. The breakfast selection everywhere we went was to die for: fruits of all kinds, overflowing smoothie bowls, cold press juices, toasts, the choices go on and on. When I came back to Miami, I started exploring the city for some fresh food options that would bring me back to Bali. I started going to the fruit markets of Allapattah and found out something very interesting: while there are loads of amazing fresh fruit at great prices, there is also a lot of fruit that goes to waste! I dug a little deeper and found that food waste is a major issue globally.
About 1/3 of the world’s perfectly good food goes to waste due to blemishes and imperfections, supply chain inefficiencies, or bad consumer habits. Because bananas are the world’s biggest wasted fruit, and there are a lot of bananas in Miami, I thought this would a great opportunity for a small business. And this is how Peel was born! We only use rescued bananas that would otherwise go to waste to make banana bowls with delicious toppings. It really is a perfect meal or snack for a post workout, for breakfast, for the middle of the day. At the end of the day, we’re promoting conscious eating in a fun, innovative way all while having a small impact on a big cause.
Has it been a smooth road?
I wanted to start Peel as a small mobile concept so finding the right truck was very difficult because I had not considered the weight necessary for a soft serve machine. I purchased a 1988 Italian Ape Piaggio off our friends at Honest Apes down in little Havana and had my other friends at the Apiary create the back to be a tiny little food truck. You should see how small this thing is but so cute and functional. It is still the best seller at private events and can actually ride down the Venetian! Because the weight was very limited on the little guy and the demand was getting bigger, we needed to go for an actual trailer which is what we did right before the year ended. Our new guy, which I call the #PeelMobile has been on the road now for a few months. He’s been great thus far but unfortunately to COVID-19, we’ve put a pause on our events and can’t wait to get back out.
We’d love to hear more about your business.
Peel is a company that uses rescued fruit from local suppliers in Allapattah that would otherwise go to waste to create creamy vegan soft serve, only using two ingredients for the base and different toppings. Every Peel serving is roughly two bananas and a tablespoon of coconut milk, so the base is fully vegan, super healthy and filling. We have our best-seller, the Palanquera with strawberries, pineapple, coconut flakes and a honey drizzle that is a perfect substitute for a meal or just a snack at any time of the day. Our banana peels are also saved and then brought to local compost places. We’re a fully sustainable, fun, healthy alternative to a typical fruit bowl.
Is our city a good place to do what you do?
The current situation has made us think Peel long term. Because our main product is soft serve, we can’t really do an online delivery model so we’ve been testing different products that can shift to this model while keeping food waste in mind. We’re still picking up fruit from our local suppliers down in Allapattah and testing recipes so we’re excited to be able to bring Peel home soon. Miami is definitely a good place for entrepreneurs looking to innovate and it’s definitely a great place for Peel, although every business needs to be constantly evolving as does the city.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.peelsoftserve.com
- Email: hello@peelsoftserve.com
- Instagram: peelsoftserve
Image Credit:
@hc.collective & @leontievks
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