From sweeping factory floors as a sixth grader to leading product innovation, finance, and marketing, Doug Renfro’s story with Renfro Foods and Mrs. Renfro’s Salsa is one of heritage, reinvention, and scale. After years in corporate finance, Doug returned to the family business - founded by his grandparents in Fort Worth over 85 years ago - and helped guide it into a new era of flavor development and operational sophistication. Known for their bold varieties like Mango Habanero, Ghost Pepper, and the new Spicy Pickle collaboration, Renfro Foods now produces 195 jars of salsa per minute while still holding tight to a family ethos of integrity, quality, and service.
Doug shares how he “cooks with Excel” before he cooks in the lab, the balancing act of R&D creativity with supply chain reality, and how he navigated the chaos of 2022’s ingredient and packaging cost spikes. He opens up about running a business with family, maintaining legacy while pushing innovation, and building lasting private-label and co-pack partnerships with national retailers. Between pomegranate chipotle misfires and viral Taylor Swift–inspired campaigns, Renfro Foods has grown through adaptability and authenticity - anchored by a grandmother on every label and a story that still resonates three generations later.
Chapters
(00:00:12) - Handling The Heat: Doug Renfro, President of Ren(00:01:21) - Doug Baldwin on Eating Well(00:02:03) - Doug Renfro Returns to the Family Business(00:07:16) - Mrs. Renfro Foods: Legacy of Innovation(00:09:44) - Rebuilding Renfro's R&D Process(00:14:08) - Covid Salsa(00:16:05) - What's been your like Doug in the Lab Thinking? Cooking up(00:17:11) - Food and Beverage: Handling the Heat(00:18:05) - In the Elevator With YPO(00:22:10) - Renfro Foods' Private Label Salsa(00:23:58) - How Much Creativity Is Involved in Renfro Foods S(00:25:05) - Renfro's Salsa: On a Competitors' Scale(00:27:14) - Favorite Renfro's Pepper Flavor(00:29:58) - Doug Renfro on His 80th Birthday

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