We were lucky to catch up with Margie Traxler recently and have shared our conversation below.
Margie , thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. Let’s start with a fun one – what’s something you believe that most people in your industry (or in general) disagree with?
I believe that the steep rise in autoimmune disorders has a very strong connection to the types of foods we eat and the increase in chemicals used to grow, process and preserve our foods. Over 90% of baked goods are made with flours of grains, both gluten and non-gluten, and sweetened with cane- and corn- sugars. All of these ingredients are from one scientific family; the Edible Grass family. 10-30% of the world population suffer from seasonal allergies…to grasses. Yet we consume grass ingredients multiple times per day and then wonder why so many are having digestive issues and systemic inflammation. If a person who has seasonal allergies is near grass, especially spring or fall, they get watery eyes, runny noses and sneeze a lot. When these same people eat them multiple times daily, it would stand to reason that they would cause digestive distress and resultant inflammation. Then add in chemicals and you have an even bigger problem.
So how did I come to this realization? My daughter got sick from eating wheat and sugar when she was 6 years old. We were then gluten free, but she was only ‘less sick’. We progressed to eating ‘grain free’ and she was even less sick. Then we decided to go gluten/grain/sugar free and she was healthy again. I realized that we are allergic to grass, and all the grains, sugar, corn, etc. are grasses! What an eyeopener. I also quit consuming Edible Grass Ingredients and got rid of 95% of my seasonal allergies. Not only that, but now I sleep through the night (I used to wake up wide awake at 3:00 am), and the puffiness I thought was weight disappeared. It was inflammation.
Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers.
I got into my industry/business as a result of researching and creating foods my kids and I could safely eat because when we went gluten/grain/sugar free 16 years ago there were no baked goods we could buy in the grocery store. In 2004, when both my daughter and I were overwhelmed, we made a pinky promise to one day provide the products and resources we wished would have been available for us. In late 2017, Grain Free Mama’s (https://www.gfmamas.com) was born. Our mission/vision is two-fold; (1) Grain Free Mama’s baking mix products that are Edible Grass ingredient Free (gluten/grain/sugar free), dairy free, soy free, botanical nut free (coconut is a botanical fruit), and free of artificial flavors/colors/preservatives. Just simply great tasting clean food. (2) Educational resources (online courses, books, recipe books) and an online supportive, interactive community, A Place At The Table Global Community (https://a-place-at-the-table.mn.co/share/BQXUu23O-uCIqqR-?utm_source=manual). This name we chose because when you find out you can’t eat like everyone else, you no longer feel like you have a place at the table. We want to change that, one happy person at a time.
I am most happy and proud of the progress we’ve made, the people we’ve helped and that now there is hope readily available for others who are on a similar journey.
How about pivoting – can you share the story of a time you’ve had to pivot?
Yes, at the beginning of the pandemic, I could see that the supply chain of ingredients/products was going to disrupt worldwide. I had to put on the brakes for getting the product out there. During the pandemic I used the time to further refine the book and cookbook (Food Breakthrough: Adjust Your Diet Transform Your Life). I started getting phone calls from people who needed help trying to figure out what to eat, what was safe, what was harmful, etc. with food. I found that I was repeating the same information over and over again. It became apparent that there was need for a supportive community. Out of this time, A Place At The Table Global Community, was born: We bring people together to grow our food knowledge, shed outdated thinking, and reframe our food mindsets to transform our lives, health, and well-being. We do this through up-to-date food and nutrition information, engaging community conversations, education courses, events/challenges, webinars/seminars and specific topic groups.
Can you tell us about what’s worked well for you in terms of growing your clientele?
Creating engaging and educational articles, posts and videos to share on the different social media channels. People are searching daily for help with issues they are facing, and health issues are at the top of the list of topics people are interested in. I have found they are also wanting to be entertained, so I do try to bring in some humor and fun in my posts. I think guest spots on podcasts will be good too, and of course, having the wonderful opportunity to be in someone else’s article is an absolute honor.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.gfmamas.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/gfmamas/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/gfmamas1
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/margietraxler/
- Twitter: https://twitter.com/gfmamas
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@gfmamas/
- TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@gfmamas