47. Cauli Rice

Founders: Gem Misa and Jamie Harris
Founded: October 2013 (Launched September 2015)
Website: www.caulirice.com/uk

Making its second appearance in the Startups 100, Cauli Rice is the carb substitute founded by husband and wife team Gem Misa and Jamie Harris which is designed to help dieters and fitness fans reduce their carb intake but still feel full.

Tired of making their own cauliflower rice from scratch, Misa and Harris sought to find convenient, ready-made cauliflower rice in the supermarkets but were surprised to find nothing of the sort. This led to the realisation that there was a gap in the market for a brand new ‘rice’ product.

In 2015, after three years of development and three rounds of crowdfunding, the pair launched Cauli Rice – microwaveable, low-carb, vegan, gluten-free, preservative-free rice substitute. As well as containing vitamins, minerals and dietary fibre, the rice is ready in two and half minutes, contains 75% fewer calories than regular rice and stays fresh for 12 months.

Stocked with Tesco, ASDA, Waitrose, Sainsbury’s, Wholefoods and a range of independent stores, the product comes in a range of flavours including original, Mediterranean, Indian Pilau and Spicy Chicken.

Cauli Rice has also now launched a subscription offering; allowing customers to sign up to receive eight 200 gram packets delivered either weekly, bi-weekly or monthly.

In its first year of trading, Cauli Rice turned over an impressive £1.5m, selling its products to more than 350,000 households. And, after securing listings in major supermarket chains across the US and Europe, the company is hoping to hit £2.2m in revenue for 2017.

As the faux-carbohydrate craze continues to thrive, this London start-up is making big waves in the global market and is thought to be the fastest growing brand in the rice sector.