Stop by our stand at a local farmer’s market and you’ll hear the following mantra from the Co-Rockers:
“Off Our Rocker Plant based cookies and granola are dairy free, soy-free, gluten-free and cage free, (we allow our sweet potatoes to roll and roam), NOT free from nuts. That being said, we are most definitely nuts!”
Today’s food vernacular can be confusing, redundant and frankly overwhelming. Let’s try and clarify:
Plant-based and vegan assume dairy-free, but dairy- free is not plant -based. However, dairy-free could be kosher, but not all kosher products are dairy- free. And by the way, E=MC2.
Although Off Our Rocker Cookies produces plant-based cookies and granola, the Co-Rockers are both herbivores and carnivores, and neither claims to be vegan, plant- based, vegetarian or pescatarian. Since immersing ourselves in the food business, food vernacular has grown as quickly as cryptocurrency offerings, and food labels are beginning to rival the retail industry – LV elevates a handbag and L & V (Local and Vegan) elevates the food packaging. The more labels, the sexier the packaging.
Back in 2017 when we became off our rocker, we made cookies with dairy (can anyone recall Orange is the New Chip or Lime in the Coco-Chip?) alongside our only vegan offering, Sweetie Pie. Customers loved the flavors and names, but most gravitated towards our uncommon sweet potato cookie: delicious, moist, healthy, made with four simple ingredients and no preservatives, unlike any vegan cookie on the market. Our audience had spoken, and as budding foodpreneurs, we pivoted (yes, this word actually existed pre-COVID ). The ultimate goal --to reach across the produce aisle and appeal to herbivores and carnivores alike.
Still, the Co-Rockers found themselves in food identity limbo until they came across the newest foodstyle fad, “Flexitarian”. According to a recent google search, “A Flexitarian diet embraces a lifestyle that is mostly vegetarian and incorporates meat and animal products from time to time.” Phew. We can totally subscribe to that. Isn’t this what life is all about? Flexibility? Balance? Mindfulness? That’s what we personally continue to strive for during a time when views are so polarized.
We love the idea of meeting in the middle, to embrace new ideas, to learn, to listen, to empathize, to be mindful and above all respectful of different choices. Life is short and as Seniorpreneurs, we’ve been around the block and can attest that flexibility and balance are exactly what we all need. We embrace each and every one of you for how you choose to live your life, and remind yourself to enjoy every cookie, especially an Off Our Rocker Sweet Potato cookie.