| Bastyr University » Academic Degree Programs » Interviews » Alumni Spotlight | March 16, 2010 |
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How Do You Spell Success? For Five Bastyr Alumni, it's Z-I-N-G!
Four Bastyr-trained nutritionists and one naturopathic physician collaborated in the creation and marketing of the "deliciously different" Zing bars. Four registered dietitians — Minh-Hai Tran, Sandi Kaplan, David Ingalls and Kathleen Putnam — saw an unmet need when patients continually asked them to suggest healthy snack foods made from all natural ingredients. It took 18 months from the time the group conceived of the idea until three flavors of Zing Bars — chocolate peanut butter, blueberry almond and oatmeal chocolate chip — were for sale online and in select retail locations. Two of the three Zing flavors are gluten-free and all three are wheat-free. A balance of protein, lowglycemic carbohydrates and healthy fats helps to stabilize energy and blood sugar. "We believe that getting pleasure
from the foods you eat is important
to a happy and healthy lifestyle." "But we refuse to compromise on taste!" Tran says. "We believe that getting pleasure from the foods you eat is important to a happy and healthy lifestyle." The fifth member of the team, Dr. Michael Kaplan, recently gave up his practice to work full time at Northwest Nutritional Foods, LLC, a Seattle-based company the group founded to develop and market their products. They are currently working on two new flavors that cannot yet be revealed but will be coming soon to the Bastyr cafeteria and — hopefully — a location near you! "Sales have exceeded our expectations," Tran says. "There's a sign next to the bars in the (Bastyr) cafeteria saying that they were developed by Bastyr grads. And the students have been very enthusiastic in supporting us!" She credits the "community feel" and collaborative approach they learned at Bastyr as primary reasons for the group's success, noting that "none of us could ever have done this alone."
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