Food Entrepreneur AUSTIN, TEXAS — SKU, the Austin-based consumer packaged goods accelerator, has selected six startups to participate in its first food and beverage cohort. Founders will receive mentorship, networking and education during the 12-week program, which kicks off at Natural Products Expo West, March 8-11 in Anaheim, Calif.

“SKU is on a mission to connect founders to CPG resources so they can create the household brands of tomorrow,” said Emily Kealey, managing director of SKU. “The SKU Food & Beverage 2023 is another example of this mission at work. We are excited to launch this cohort at Expo West 2023 and showcase each brand at our SKU booth. Through our mentors, partners and sponsors, our unique ecosystem gives us the opportunity to accelerate these founders so they can make a lasting change in the CPG industry.”

The six brands named to the cohort are:

  • Blue Norther, a brand of hard seltzer founded by an Austin-based father-and-son team, using fruit juice, organic agave and raw cane sugar;
  • delOrigen, a Colombian maker of Latin American-inspired frozen meals and snacks;
  • Growth Spurt, a creator of full-fat goat milk toddler formula enhanced with essential vitamins and minerals;
  • Leisure Project, a line of canned hydration beverages developed by two brothers and former college athletes;
  • RoRo’s Baking Co., a family-owned and -operated Dallas-based bakery specializing in cinnamon rolls and dinner rolls; and
  • Wunderkeks, a cookie business founded by married Guatemalan immigrants and consumer products veterans.
Founded in 2011, SKU has worked with more than 100 brands, including Epic Provisions and Siete Family Foods. Coca-Cola Co.’s New Revenue Streams organization is the lead beverage sponsor for the track. 


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