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Guests of the Morehouse Economic Development Corporation’s annual breakfast Wednesday got to sample the unique taste of sweet potato bread rolls, courtesy of two entrepreneurs who have chosen Bastrop as the headquarters of their new business.
Ben Erwin and Josh Raley are the founders of Macon Ridge Foods, a brand new business that will supply nutritious bread products made from Louisiana sweet potatoes. They have chosen Bastrop’s Industrial Park as the site of their headquarters, and expect to move in within the next few weeks.
Erwin said he grew up in Collinston and majored in electrical engineering at Louisiana Tech University in Ruston. Raley said he is originally from Crowville and also attended Tech, where he majored in entrepreneurship and management and also earned his master’s degree.
Erwin said he started the Louisiana Tech Top Dawg Business Plan Competition, and Raley entered his plan for what would later grow into Macon Ridge Foods.
“That was sort of the genesis,” said Erwin. “We’ve been cultivating this project for awhile.”
Raley said the idea for a sweet potato bread roll is “easily 100 years old.”
The company’s “Dezzie Rolls” and “Dezzie Dough” are named for Raley’s great-mother, Dezzie Raley, who made sweet potato bread products in Epps during the Great Depression. The idea may go back even further, he said, as his ancestors lived and farmed in the area since the Civil War era.
“We want to be the company that makes sweet potatoes convenient to use and leverage the health benefits,” said Raley.
Both Erwin and Raley said as far as they know, they are the first business to market this type of sweet potato product nationwide.
“Fries and chips are great, but we’re taking a different approach,” said Erwin. “Most people don’t realize the sweet potato is actually the healthiest vegetable there is. It’s a healthier alternative to stereotypical breakfast foods.”
Raley said the sweet potato roll might not be as healthy as steamed broccoli -- but no one eats steamed broccoli as a snack.
Erwin said he has lived in Austin, Texas for the past five years but has recently moved to Monroe. Raley now lives in West Monroe.
While the actual manufacturing of the sweet potato rolls will be done in Monroe, the business headquarters will be in Bastrop’s Industrial Park.
“We met with economic development people throughout the region,” said Erwin. “Bastrop provided us with the best opportunity.”
Guests of the Morehouse Economic Development Corporation’s annual breakfast Wednesday got to sample the unique taste of sweet potato bread rolls, courtesy of two entrepreneurs who have chosen Bastrop as the headquarters of their new business.
Ben Erwin and Josh Raley are the founders of Macon Ridge Foods, a brand new business that will supply nutritious bread products made from Louisiana sweet potatoes. They have chosen Bastrop’s Industrial Park as the site of their headquarters, and expect to move in within the next few weeks.
Erwin said he grew up in Collinston and majored in electrical engineering at Louisiana Tech University in Ruston. Raley said he is originally from Crowville and also attended Tech, where he majored in entrepreneurship and management and also earned his master’s degree.
Erwin said he started the Louisiana Tech Top Dawg Business Plan Competition, and Raley entered his plan for what would later grow into Macon Ridge Foods.
“That was sort of the genesis,” said Erwin. “We’ve been cultivating this project for awhile.”
Raley said the idea for a sweet potato bread roll is “easily 100 years old.”
The company’s “Dezzie Rolls” and “Dezzie Dough” are named for Raley’s great-mother, Dezzie Raley, who made sweet potato bread products in Epps during the Great Depression. The idea may go back even further, he said, as his ancestors lived and farmed in the area since the Civil War era.
“We want to be the company that makes sweet potatoes convenient to use and leverage the health benefits,” said Raley.
Both Erwin and Raley said as far as they know, they are the first business to market this type of sweet potato product nationwide.
“Fries and chips are great, but we’re taking a different approach,” said Erwin. “Most people don’t realize the sweet potato is actually the healthiest vegetable there is. It’s a healthier alternative to stereotypical breakfast foods.”
Raley said the sweet potato roll might not be as healthy as steamed broccoli -- but no one eats steamed broccoli as a snack.
Erwin said he has lived in Austin, Texas for the past five years but has recently moved to Monroe. Raley now lives in West Monroe.
While the actual manufacturing of the sweet potato rolls will be done in Monroe, the business headquarters will be in Bastrop’s Industrial Park.
“We met with economic development people throughout the region,” said Erwin. “Bastrop provided us with the best opportunity.”
Erwin said they chose this location for its agricultural connection, and because of the assistance of MEDC CEO Kay King.
“It was a slam dunk,” said Erwin.
“The story is so rooted in Louisiana,” said Raley. “We’re proud of Louisiana. We like to call it home.”
Macon Ridge Foods will store inventory and ship out of its facility in Bastrop to restaurants and retail outlets throughout the 48 contiguous states. They anticipate selling Dezzie Dough through traditional retail and to local restaurants.
“We’re planning to launch a new Web site that will allow people to place a direct order [for our products],” said Erwin. “We plan to launch the business by the end of this year.”
You can learn more about Macon Ridge Foods and their unique sweet potato products by visiting their current Web site at www.maconridgefoods.com.
