Meet Chayilah Oldham of Noice Foods in Manitou Springs

Today we’d like to introduce you to Chayilah Oldham.

Thanks for sharing your story with us Chayilah. So, let’s start at the beginning and we can move on from there.
I was born and raised in Southern Missouri. My family and the surrounding community were/are mostly made up of farmers, crop farmers, cattle farmers, produce farmers, chicken farmers, etc. I definitely had a heavy dose of “Know your farmer, know your food.” in my life. Growing up a foodie in a rural town that didn’t have ISPs (Internet Service Providers) until I was a teenager, my “recipe for success” stemmed from no fun websites or apps to inspire ideas, having a very basic produce selection at our one and only grocery store while living in an extremely low-income household. This made for a very standard Southern culinary experience for the first half of my life. The very limited amount of income in our family was no worry though, as the amount of wild edibles available well compensated for what we couldn’t get at the store. We had gallons and gallons of blackberries, morel mushrooms, wild onions, wild grapes, currents, black walnuts, hickory nuts, poke, hackberries, papaw, the list goes on and on.

I remember a tiny step stool that my mom would get out every time she would make supper, so I was tall enough to reach the countertop to help. My grandmother and mother are both master bread-makers and my grandmother retired from being a chef at our community’s school, so food was (and still is) definitely my life. Bread into me, if you will… ha!

Through the years of growing up, I became very aware that most people had no clue where their food comes from, depending solely on supermarkets and grocery stores for every single item of their lives. Also realizing at the same time that farmers have one of the lowest-paying jobs in this nation and that most of the larger crop farms are paid via government subsidies.

When a farmer decides to receive subsidies, it limits them to only plant certain seeds they’re given and to use regulated pesticides/herbicides that the plant needs in order to thrive. In these cases, the farmed crop is usually meant for cattle feed (Fun fact; When combining animal grazing land and the land it takes to grow their food, it totals up to about 40% of the entirety of America’s farmland.) So if an independent farmer feels the desire to grow food for their community, it is up to the community to support them! They don’t get any additional support because the seeds they use are unregulated. After discovering this, many turning points in my life happened.

Overall, has it been relatively smooth? If not, what were some of the struggles along the way?
Usually a business’ immediate challenge is funding. This is not my case, due to how well our flavor profiles are, the products sell themselves and so many investors want a piece of the pie. For that I am so grateful!

However, creating a consistently stable, thick and creamy vegan mayo has been my biggest culinary challenge. I’ve lost months’ worth of sleep, not to mention dumped so many gallons of the product due to a lack of knowledge. There are very few forerunners in the vegan mayo world and I thought for the longest time, I would need to purchase a $10k homogenizer to create a competitive product. After nine months of arduous digging, I came across a very successful company that specializes in creating gum blends for specific products, specializing in sauces and dressings. They helped me formulate a blend of acacia and xanthan gum to add to our current mayo and viola! A mayo product that holds up to any challenge! The best part is because it takes such a small amount of the gum, there is no additional cost passed on to the consumer! It pays to research.

Noice Foods – what should we know? What do you guys do best? What sets you apart from the competition?
Noice Foods Ltd. is a completely vegan company with a major focus on sustainability. From the start of production in October 2019, we’ve been blown away at the amount of local restaurant and retail outlet support. We currently manufacture a delicious Manitou Ranch Dressing, Thousand Island Dressing and our signature Mayo, which is the base for both dressings. The main ingredient used for our products is GMO-Free, Colorado-grown sunflower oil. So our products are not only wildly satisfying but also healthier than most!

Currently, 90% of what we bottle comes from GMO-Free crops grown in Colorado, Idaho and Maine. The rest of the ingredients and packaging are sourced within the US and we’re continually working on ways to incorporate more local and sustainable ingredients whenever possible.

One of the biggest things I discovered about myself early on was an intense desire to know how to grow our own food, no matter the climate, as well as helping to increase support to the dwindling numbers of local farmers. This is why I wanted to create a company with a focus on locally supplied ingredients. Owning a small business during the current pandemic is challenging, to say the least. However, it is clear to me that a shift towards ethically, locally and sustainably grown food is on the rise. Our future looks brighter today than ever before.

What is “success” or “successful” for you?
Success, I feel, is completely dependent on the individual’s perspective. To me, success is defined by how many people I can help. Sustaining a business structure as an outlet for myself and others to do what they love is just a bonus.

I have grand ideas and hopes for our future as a company like creating local sustainable jobs, funding mass amounts of permaculture land, educating conventional farmers on sustainable cultivating practices… the list of big ideas goes on and on for me as a humanitarian. All of these are definite markers for me in the future. However, I relish in the success of all the adversities I’ve pushed through, no matter how insignificant it may seem, to get to where I am today. So the saying goes, “Just gotta pick yourself up by your own bootstraps” and not play victim to what the world has dealt to you. Make the absolute best out of what you have. Success 101.

Contact Info:

• Website: noicefoods.com
• Email: noicefoods@gmail.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/noicefoods/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/noicefoods/

Suggest a story: VoyageDenver is built on recommendations from the community; it’s how we uncover hidden gems, so if you or someone you know deserves recognition please let us know here.