Talking Shiitake
My mission is to help make our food system healthier, more sustainable and ethical. In a market where consumers are making more informed decisions about the food they buy, I believe that food businesses catering to these needs will be the most successful. I’m Michael Fox, CEO and Co-Founder of Shiitake mushroom company Fable Food. For years I’ve been obsessed with our food system. Welcome to my podcast where I Talk Shiitake with successful chefs, food industry executives and entrepreneurs to learn about what’s lead to their success in the food industry.
Talking Shiitake
Diem Fuggersberger - from refugee to successful food entrepreneur
In this episode I Talk Shiitake with Diem Fuggersberger.
Diem’s story is a tale of resilience, persistence, great food and a passion for sustainability. She had a turbulent childhood fleeing Vietnam with her family as a child, being attacked by pirates, and living in a refugee camps before making it to Australia.
Diem learnt to cook from her Vietnamese Grandma and her butcher mother. They instilled the importance of ingredient selection, food preparation and sustainability.
With her husband and business partner Werner, they built a food manufacturing business growing to 105 employees before the financial crisis hit and they had to close their business down leaving them $1M in debt.
They bounced back founding Berger Ingredients which has grown into an incredible business blending spices, manufacturing ready meals including the Coco & Lucas brand available in all Woolworths stores in Australia, baking granolas and pastries, and producing sauces and protein for food service.
They’ve launched 55 SKUs into retail in Australia working with Woolworths, Coles and Costco. We’ve been developing a partnership with them at Fable and their work and food are outstanding.
Diem is an incredibly inspiring woman and it was a real pleasure to speak with her on Talking Shiitake.