• Name: Meg Stocker
  • Joined Earthbound Farm: December 2015
  • Role: Brand Manager
  • Location: Broomfield, Colorado
  • What brought Meg to Earthbound: Returning to her home state of Colorado and working on a reputable, organic brand
  • What Keeps her Here: The people; the challenge and reward of no day ever being the same; and working on a brand that makes a positive difference in people’s lives
  • Favorite Earthbound product: Meg self-proclaims being “ridiculously passionate” about our BBQ Ranch Chopped Salad Kit
  • When she’s not at work: Meg enjoys all Colorado has to offer with her wife, Melissa of five years, and 18-month-old daughter, Carly; playing guitar, singing and taking photos (especially of her cats and beautiful scenery)

Meet Meg Stocker. Meg joined Earthbound Farm in December 2015 – based in our Broomfield, Colorado office – as the Brand Manager of our core/base greens business. That means she is on the front lines of ensuring the success of Earthbound Farm in the marketplace…not an insignificant task! But as her colleagues attest—and a peek at her upbeat, quirky desk décor suggests—Meg is a firecracker and beacon of positive energy. So if anyone’s up for the task, it’s Meg.“I manage the Earthbound Farm brand,” she explains, “by coordinating across the many functions of the company to ensure the overall health of the business and help bring new products to market.” She acknowledges that this job can be a wild ride in the produce industry—as uncontrollable factors, including Mother Nature, have the upper hand. But she says the fact that no day is ever the same is both the most rewarding AND most challenging aspect of her job. Prior to Earthbound Farm, Meg worked for Johnson & Johnson and Campbell Soup Company, where she honed her marketing prowess. But she was particularly excited to join Earthbound Farm because it brought her back to her beloved home state of Colorado and because she had always wanted to work on an organic brand. (Organic food became especially important to her after the birth of her daughter, Carly). Who better to work for than Earthbound Farm, she asks, given its incredible organic brand heritage and leadership for over 30 years?

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Meg fondly recalls key moments that affirmed she was at home at Earthbound Farm. One such moment was the first time she set foot in our fields near San Juan Bautista, Calif. She was immediately blown away by the passion of our growers and the amount of planning, love, meticulous care and physical energy goes into bringing high quality, safe, organic produce to store shelves.“The fields were unbelievably beautiful and picturesque; but more than that, seeing them first-hand me feel so much more connected to and appreciative of every step that goes into growing our produce and the many complexities of our business.”Another standout moment for Meg included a team lunch at the Earthbound Farm Farm Stand in Carmel Valley, Calif., a venue that is part organic market, café and gardens and living example of the Earthbound brand and its history.“We toured the farm stand, talked to shoppers about what the farm stand means to them and had a delicious menu based around our products. We also walked through the beautiful gardens, which serve as great inspiration and tutorial for creating your own organic garden space to grow food.”But she notes that the day was truly punctuated by a meeting with founder Myra Goodman, who gave a firsthand account of the brand story, including how it all started back in 1984 and grew to become the nation’s largest grower of organic produce. “That our founders remain an interactive part of the brand…and the ideals they instilled still resonate…are unique aspects to our brand that we are lucky to have”, Meg says.

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As much as Meg is deeply passionate about this rich history, she is equally passionate about the future of the brand and the opportunities to continue to positively impact people’s lives related to food.

“I personally love food. At its most fundamental, food is a life source. It’s something that every single person interacts with or seeks on a daily basis and often consists of a shared experience between families, friends, and others. Because the food we grow is organic, and therefore closer to the Earth,” she continues, “gives us an even more powerful narrative when talking about our food and its benefits to people and the planet.”

But at the end of the day, Meg affirms it must be delicious and convenient. So if this means exploring new innovations that meet consumers’ changing needs – such as ready-to-eat organic Chopped Salad Kits – or simply helping people rethink how best to incorporate our greens, vegetables, fruit, and frozen items into their favorite family recipes, Meg says she loves being a part of these conversations.

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So what keeps Meg coming back every day? The people, she says. One of the many positive things she calls out about the culture of Earthbound Farm is the mix of old and new guard.  “You have those who have been with the company since the early days and have a deep working knowledge of the brand because they helped make it what it is today,” she says. “But you also have the fresh perspectives of newcomers who were drawn here because of that legacy but also want to help shape the brand’s future growth.” Old or new guard, Meg notes, the common and powerful link among employees is a shared passion for bringing more organic food to more people through the Earthbound Farm brand…both preserving what has made it great and finding opportunities to make it even better. And that keeps her pretty fired up.