Culturing Better Fast Food

Dairy Foods, Oct, 2001 by Donna Berry

Stonyfield's Hirshberg establishes natural fast food outlet

A few days before O'Naturals (r) opened in Falmouth, Maine, co-founder and President Mac McCabe decided not to be included on the strip mall's street sign. That didn't seem to make a difference. In this college-educated, upper middle class suburb of Portland, business folks and parents knew of O'Naturals pending opening and were very anxious to dine on "French fries without guilt," "prairie-raised wild buffalo burgers" and "fruit shakes made with Stonyfield Farm (r) organic low-fat yogurt."

With about 4,000 sq ft, capacity for 70 diners and a simple sign on its front entrance, O'Naturals has been attracting a steady crowd since it opened on May 15 and grossing "average per store daily sales larger than McDonalds' U.S. per store average," says O'Natural's co-founder and Chairman Gary Hirshberg.

In the dairy industry, Hirshberg is known as the environmentalist-turned-CEO of the fastest growing U.S. yogurt company-Londonderry, N.H.-based Stonyfield Farm. At home, his wife and three kids know him as the man with a mission to feed his family healthier food.

"With natural and organic foods booming during the last five years, I realized I wasn't the only parent looking for food on the run that offered more value than just the latest Disney toy," he says. "Our vision for O'Naturals is to be a place where you can get great food (that kids really like), a warm family setting if you have time to sit and an opportunity to pick up some staples on the way out."

Hirshberg's long-term vision for O'Naturals includes a location near every McDonald's and Burger King nationwide, complete with drive-thru windows. But he can't accomplish this alone while growing the No. 4 U.S. yogurt brand, which is poised to overtake No. 3 within two years. That's where McCabe fits in.

McCabe manages this order-at-the-counter, wait-for-your-meal-to-be-prepared-in establishment. Besides burgers, fries and shakes, patrons can build a salad using organic and/or local produce (when available), create a sandwich between two pieces of organic flat bread or opt for an Asian-style noodle dish. Kids can get chicken nuggets, hot dogs and mac & cheese, all made with natural and organic ingredients. Milk and veggie sticks with dip are promoted as part of the kids' combo. Can't find that at McDonald's!

With much of its interior structure made from recycled materials, along with leather couches for lingering, "I like to think of O'Naturals as a cross between Starbucks and Whole Foods," Hirshberg says. "It's a place to buy healthy food for now or later, and a safe, community gathering place."