Mini Episode: Flavors, Formulators & Fast Turnarounds with Ian Haworth, FlavorSum
The Startup CPG Podcast
Startup CPG
4.9 • 642 Ratings
🗓️ 11 March 2026
⏱️ 14 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
In this mini episode of the Startup CPG Podcast, host Daniel Scharff sits down with Ian Haworth, Business Development Director at FlavorSum, to talk all things flavor—timed with the launch of Startup CPG's first-ever Product Developer Directory. FlavorSum is a fast-growing North American custom flavor manufacturer built specifically for growing food and beverage brands and the formulators who serve them.
Ian breaks down what custom flavors actually are and when you need them, how FlavorSum's "solutions model" covers everything from marketing insights and regulatory affairs to sensory and analytical support, and why their "Amazon-like" approach—samples within 48 hours, pricing within 24—sets them apart. He also shares a great example of a father-daughter duo who came in for an in-person tech session and walked out with a finished non-alcoholic beverage concept in hours.
Whether you're a brand trying to understand what to look for in a flavor supplier or a formulator evaluating partners, this episode gives you a quick but packed look at how the right flavor house can accelerate your go-to-market.
Listen in as they discuss:
- What custom flavors are and when off-the-shelf options aren't enough
- The FlavorSum solutions model: marketing insights, regulatory, sensory, and analytical all under one roof
- Why response time matters—and how FlavorSum built their business around 24–48 hour turnarounds
- FlavorSum Access: a 24/7 portal for technical and safety data sheets
- What brands should be asking about their flavors: claims, heat and pH stability, shelf life, and retailer compliance
- How to get ahead of supply chain disruptions before they delay your production
Episode Links:
Ian Haworth – Business Development Director, FlavorSum
🔗 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ian-haworth-54561328/
🔗 Company LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/flavorsumllc/
🌐 Flavorsum Website: https://www.flavorsum.com/contact
Startup CPG Product Developer Directory: https://startupcpg.com/product-developer-directory
Don't forget to leave a five-star review on Apple Podcasts or Spotify if you enjoyed this episode. For potential sponsorship opportunities or to join the Startup CPG community, visit http://www.startupcpg.com.
Show Links:
- Transcripts of each episode are available on the Transistor platform that hosts our podcast here (click on the episode and toggle to “Transcript” at the top)
- Join the Startup CPG Slack community (35K+ members and growing!)
- Follow @startupcpg
- Visit host Daniel's Linkedin
- Questions or comments about the episode? Email Daniel at podcast@startupcpg.com
- Episode music by Super Fantastics
Transcript
Click on a timestamp to play from that location
| 0:00.0 | Welcome everyone to a mini episode with our friends at Flavorsome. As you probably heard, |
| 0:14.3 | we recently released the first ever directory of all of the product developers out there. That's |
| 0:18.5 | hundreds of formulators and food scientists who could |
| 0:21.4 | make your product dreams come true. We did it with the support of our friends at Flavorsome. |
| 0:26.2 | They are the fastest growing North American flavor company. They partner with growing food and beverage |
| 0:31.0 | brands and formulators seeking custom flavor solutions without the cost or complexity of those |
| 0:35.8 | large-scale suppliers. So brands developing |
| 0:38.2 | beverages, dairy, bakery, confection, or sports nutrition products could benefit from their |
| 0:42.5 | responsive support, their fast lead times, and scalable liquid flavor portfolio. So today on the |
| 0:47.2 | podcast, we're talking a lot about what makes a good flavor. How do formulators work with flavors |
| 0:51.7 | and flavor houses? Really interesting stuff. And all the things that you just generally want to know about flavors. |
| 0:56.9 | If you want to get in touch with them, their website isflaversome.com. |
| 1:00.4 | That's flavor and then s-u-m.com. |
| 1:04.2 | It's in the show notes. |
| 1:05.3 | And so is our new product developer directory. |
| 1:07.7 | All right, enjoy it. |
| 1:12.6 | All right, Ian, my friend, welcome to the podcast. I'm so excited to have you here because we have |
| 1:18.1 | released this incredible database, product developer database, which for the first time ever, |
| 1:22.7 | this has never been done before, lists all of the product developers, formulators, food |
| 1:27.0 | scientists out there |
| 1:28.0 | that we could find, and we couldn't have done it without your help. So would you mind first |
| 1:32.4 | just telling us who is flavor some and who is Ian? My name is Ian Haworth. I am the business |
... |
Please login to see the full transcript.
Disclaimer: The podcast and artwork embedded on this page are from Startup CPG, and are the property of its owner and not affiliated with or endorsed by Tapesearch.
Generated transcripts are the property of Startup CPG and are distributed freely under the Fair Use doctrine. Transcripts generated by Tapesearch are not guaranteed to be accurate.
Copyright © Tapesearch 2026.