Grain4Grain

Grain4Grain is a food technology company focused on upcycling agricultural byproducts into nutritious food ingredients. Founded in San Antonio in 2019 by Yoni Medhin and Matt Mechtly, the company addresses the significant issue of food waste generated by the brewing industry. The founders' paths converged with a shared interest in sustainability and health; Medhin, whose family immigrated from East Africa, was driven by a passion for social entrepreneurship and sustainability, while Mechtly, with a background in engineering and a college football history at the Colorado School of Mines, saw the potential in the low-carbohydrate aspect of the repurposed grain.

The company's core business involves a proprietary, patent-pending process that dries spent barley grains from breweries and mills them into a high-protein, high-fiber, low-carbohydrate flour in just 15 minutes. This rapid processing technology is a key differentiator from conventional methods that can take hours. Grain4Grain sources its primary raw material, spent grain, from local partners like Freetail Brewing Co. and Real Ale Brewery. The business operates on a dual model, serving both wholesale and direct-to-consumer markets. For consumers, the company offers products such as a pancake and waffle mix and its signature "Barely Barley Flour," initially sold at farmers' markets and online. The wholesale division supplies the upcycled flour to larger food manufacturers and retailers. A significant milestone was a partnership with the major Texas grocery chain H-E-B, which uses Grain4Grain's flour in its line of spent grain beer breads and buns sold in over 150 of its bakeries.

Grain4Grain's revenue is generated through the sale of its consumer-packaged goods and bulk flour to commercial clients. The company has demonstrated notable early-stage success, winning the $50,000 grand prize at the 2020 Tech Fuel pitch competition and placing in H-E-B's Primo Picks contest. In 2021, the company secured $775,000 in a pre-seed funding round involving The Kroger Co. Zero Hunger | Zero Waste Foundation, Village Capital, and Broadway Bank. This capital was earmarked for expanding its manufacturing capabilities to a 6,000-square-foot facility in San Antonio. The company's original name also reflected a social mission; for every pound of flour sold, it donated a pound to local food charities.

Keywords: upcycled food, spent grain, food technology, sustainable ingredients, low-carb flour, circular economy, food waste reduction, CPG, wholesale ingredients, AgTech, brewery byproduct, alternative protein, high-fiber flour, sustainable food, food innovation, Yoni Medhin, Matt Mechtly, San Antonio, H-E-B supplier, upcycled barley