Meet the Ethical Spice Brand That is Transforming the Food Industry with Equity and Transparency
BRAND SPOTLIGHT
This article was first published in 2021.
Photo Credit: Diaspora Co.
Sana Javeri Kadri, Founder and CEO of Diaspora Co.
Photo Credit: Aubrie Pick
When you open up your pantry and look at your spices, have you ever wondered where they were grown? Do you truly know where your spices were sourced from?
Chances are, even the brands themselves might not fully know.
Meet Sana Javeri Kadri, Founder and CEO of Diaspora Co. Sana is seeking to change the way spices, including the all-favorite turmeric, are harvested and delivered to us by partnering with local farmers in India to ensure an equitable sourcing— and that’s only the beginning.
With Diaspora Co., Sana is transforming the food industry by educating consumers on the origins of Indian spices, the importance of supply chain transparency, and re-contextualizing Indian spices within Indian culture and its people.
We sat down with Sana to learn about her journey with Diaspora Co. and how she is championing change for a more equitable food industry.
WOC: Hi Sana! Here at WOC (Women of Color in Fundraising and Philanthropy), we encourage the WOC Community to share their stories of their lived experiences as we’re expected to keep them hidden and out of sight. What is your story and what you led to bring Diaspora Co. to life?
Sana: I had been working in the food industry for several years when, in 2016, I noticed that turmeric was suddenly everywhere— mainly in the form of turmeric lattes at every corner cafe in the Bay Area, but it was also in popping up on countless recipe and food sites and in the wellness sphere for its health benefits. At first I thought it was a trend, because honestly, the turmeric lattes I tried were pretty terrible compared to the ones I grew up drinking in Mumbai (the proportions were all off!) but it stuck around.
I had always been interested in and invested in the single-origin food movement, so I started to dig into the origins of turmeric— and found that many American spice companies didn’t even know exactly where their turmeric was sourced from. I went back to Mumbai with a plan to learn more, and ended up launching Diaspora Co. in 2017 with a single spice: heirloom Pragati Turmeric, grown by the Kasareni family in Vijayawada, Andhra Pradesh.
We’ve since expanded quite a bit: We now offer 16 different spices (with more on the way!) grown by our family farm-partners in India and Sri Lanka.
“The spice trade had been tooled to benefit companies and the various middlemen— mainly auctioneers, processors, and wholesalers— instead of the farmers themselves, and all consciousness about where spices actually came from had been glazed over.”
WOC: In your journey of entrepreneurship within the food industry, what does it mean to be a South Asian woman, and founder of a brand?
Sana: Right now being a South Asian means acknowledging the anti-Blackness, caste-ism, and white supremacy that colonialism embedded into us, and the work that we as the South Asian diaspora need to do to stop causing harm and instead start showing up for every layer of our own communities, as well as other communities, better. It also means staying rooted in the impact I want to have— namely bringing true equity to our farm partners and cultural context about the regional cuisines of South Asia to a wider audience.
As a founder, I’ve really had to hone my skills as a responsible leader, and not take that power for granted for a second. This has taken seeking out mentorship and coaching, paying for therapy, and being self-aware and in constant dialogue with the folks that I’m now privileged to lead!
WOC: It is impossible to not ask a question about turmeric, given its status in white-dominant culture. Turmeric, like many super foods that are “discovered” in white-dominant culture, often becomes decontextualized from its history, geography, and the people who grow, cook and live with the spice.
What would you like people to know about turmeric that is often not discussed about in mainstream media?
Sana: When I started to really dig into research and visit turmeric farmers in India in 2017, I was shocked to learn that most of the turmeric sold in the United States, which was labeled as “Allepey” turmeric, wasn’t a varietal at all.
It was simply a name for all turmeric that met a certain size and shade that got lumped together— and Allepey was actually the name of a popular vacation destination for Europeans in Kerala. So any of the flavor and size and growing differences that would come from a knowledge of local varietals had essentially been whitewashed out.
I would often ask U.S.-based spice companies if they knew exactly where their turmeric was coming from, and more often than not, they didn’t have a specific answer. The spice trade had been tooled to benefit companies and the various middlemen— mainly auctioneers, processors, and wholesalers— instead of the farmers themselves, and all consciousness about where spices actually came from had been glazed over.
We’re working to change that. Our hope is to bring the cultural context, origin stories, and regional cuisines that a spice like Pragati Turmeric is rooted in and share it with the world in a thoughtful, delicious way.
WOC: A core value of Diaspora Co. is ethical consumption and honoring the farmers who grow your spices. We know shopping small is a start but are there additional steps we as consumers can take? Are there tell-tale signs of what to look for to ensure that the ingredients we purchase are truly ethical?
Sana: It’s so interesting to me that conscious home cooks care about where their produce and meat comes from, buying from small producers or farmers’ markets, but they turn a blind eye to their spice drawers!
Definitely shopping small and just taking a moment to find out where your spices come from, which year they were harvested in, and how much the folks that produced it were paid can make a big difference. And if you don’t see that information freely available, hold brands accountable for it!
WOC: Tell us about Diaspora Relief!
Sana: Watching India spiral into chaos and despair during this second wave of COVID-19 from thousands of miles away has not only been heartbreaking, but made me feel like I couldn’t sit idly by and not do something to help.
Our Diaspora Co. community has been incredibly responsive and supportive since day one (which we’re SO thankful for!). We put together a Google doc of vetted organizations with urgent funding needs and offered to send a free tote to anyone who donated $50+ and filled out our form with their receipt. We also began donating $3 from every purchase of a jar of our Kashmiri Saffron directly towards buying relief materials for Kashmir, one of the areas that’s been most impacted. To date, we’ve raised more than $345K for relief efforts in India!
We also organized a Relief for India raffle, featuring 16 amazing brands, chefs, artists, and photographers we admire, with a prize package valued at more than $1,000. So far, that raffle has raised more than $150K.
WOC: Finally, what advice would you give to budding women entrepreneurs of color?
Sana: Be really bold in your vision and dreams, and then take small baby steps every day towards that dream so it doesn’t feel overwhelming! Published is better than perfect, and then perfecting is a long, ongoing process!
About Sana
Sana Javeri Kadri (she/her) is the founder of Diaspora Co., a direct trade spice company working towards a radically equitable, sustainable, and more delicious spice supply chain.
Born and raised in Mumbai, India amidst a big family of idealists and architects, she has over a decade of experience in every facet of the food industry and supply chain from farm worker, to line cook, to marketing consultant.
She founded Diaspora Co. in 2017 and it has quickly become a nationally acclaimed, beloved food brand that will support over 150 small Indian farm partners and over 1000 and laborers by the end of 2021, and aims to set a new standard for what equity in our food system can look like.
She currently lives between Mumbai, India and Oakland, California.
