J
farm GIRL
You can taste the produce, the fiber.
There’s just so much goodness there,
compared to a pouch that’s probably
been sitting on a grocery-store shelf
for as long as your child has been alive.
The process that we use to cold-press
is a new technology for baby food:
We pick produce at its ripest and lock
in the nutrients by basically putting
the pressure of nine oceans on it, which
squeezes out the bacteria. Our baby
food can be in the fridge for months,
but it’s still fresh and full of vitamins.
Earlier this year, Once Upon a Farm
became the first refrigerated organic
baby-food brand to be available to
families eligible for the USDA’s
Women, Infants, and Children Program
(WIC). Why was that important to you?
Cofounder John Foraker and I
were determined early on that our food
not just be for kids in Santa Monica,
California, or upscale neighborhoods
in New York City. This is something that
should feed all kids. We’re WIC-
eligible in four states—Florida, West
Virginia, Vermont, and Connecticut—
which means that parents can go to
the grocery store and get their
children the best possible nutrition.
We’re officially in back-to-school
season, which can be hectic for
families. You have three young kids.
How do you prep for the school year?
I take each of them school-supply
shopping alone. There’s usually ice cream
involved. We’ll make a run to our grocery
store, and I’ll ask, “Is there anything that
you’d like to try at the top of the year?”
I like the whole process of talking about
it. You’re a team trying to tackle
something nearly impossible, which is
getting out of the house with everything
you’re supposed to have, dressed,
sunscreen on, with lunch in hand.
Yo u r Pretend Cooking Show is a hit
with your Insta followers. Would
you ever do an actual cooking show?
I’m in the kitchen a lot and I do love
food, but I don’t know that I have so
much to offer. I like doing the Instagram
show because it cracks me up and it’s
three minutes long. If it were a whole
production, I don’t know that I would be
that helpful to people out there. We’re
all better off watching Rachael and the
other professionals do their thing! —CI
Jennifer Garner has added plenty of accolades to
her already-considerable résumé over the last year:
She received a star on the Hollywood Walk of
Fame in the summer, covered People magazine’s
Beautiful Issue in the spring, and became a bona
fide Instagram star charming 6 million followers
with saxophone solos, throwback photos, and
the bedtime stories she reads to her pup, Birdie.
But there are two jobs she’s focused on right
now: getting three kids ready for the new school
year and promoting Once Upon a Farm (onceupon
afarmorganics.com), the startup specializing in
cold-pressed baby food where she is chief brand
officer. We chat with the actress-entrepreneur
about the budding company, balancing mom
duties, and her back-to-school routine.
You joined the Once Upon a Farm team in 2017.
What made you want to get involved?
I saw products that I would’ve used as a mom,
that would’ve really solved a problem for me and
other parents who are trying to work and get
things done while feeding children and taking care
of themselves. So many businesses out there feel
redundant, but this one doesn’t. It feels like
this is the next iteration of healthy food for kids:
all organic, no concentrates, no added sugars, no
added flavors or colors. I wanted to be a part of it.
There’s an influx of “natural foods” for babies
and children these days. How do you think
Once Upon a Farm stands out from the pack?
You can see the vibrant color. You see the texture.
Jennifer Garner g et s re a l a b o u t b et te r b a by fo o d , b a ck-to -
s ch o o l t ra d i t i o n s , a n d h e r In st a-fa m o u s co o k i n g s h ow.
Hover your
phone’s camera
here to see who
Jen Garner’s
celeb social
media crush is.
FAR LEFT: VICTOR DEMARCHELIER/AUGUST IMAGES
16 RACHAELRAYMAG.COM | SEPTEMBER 2019
on our radar
