I went from professional Firefighter to Sprouted Gourmet Nut producer.
What?! Yup!
I did it because I saw my brother and sister firefighters eat junk food exactly when they needed healthy, energizing food - and I needed it too.
I spent most of my life doing things that took strength and endurance: in high school it was wrestling, football, cheer-leading, surfing, and snowboarding. I was constantly active so becoming a Firefighter & Paramedic was perfect - I loved it, and I served the people of LA County proudly for over 20 years.
What people often don't understand about firefighting in California is that the scale is immense - we’re talking thousands of acres of steep canyons and rugged mountains. Firefighters and other first responders climb those canyons AND fight fires at the same time - it's exhausting, dangerous work.
So how did we sustain ourselves on those fires? Cheap snacks and sugar - it was hard to get real food on the fire line. Well that didn’t work for me, so I started eating nuts and store-bought trail mixes. But bad digestion followed.
Then I learned the art of Sprouting. It turns out, sprouting a nut - soaking it in water overnight and then drying it - unlocks nutrients and makes them more digestible and arguably better for you.
With sprouted nuts, I had more energy, better digestion, and faster recovery.
I started making them for my crew, and they loved them so much that they encouraged me to turn Rich Nuts into a business.
And here we are today.
I retired from Firefighting last year and I am working hard to bring Rich Nuts to everyone. Please try them and let me know what you think. I’m always searching for new flavors and ideas, and if you have a story about your own battle with nutrition, please let me know!