Rebel Bakehouse is new to the scene and is creating some very innovative wraps using ingredients like hemp and crickets!
Words Lara Wyatt
Good: Rebel Bakehouse has a wonderful story in terms of the ingredients used and how they’re found. Can you tell us more about this?
We first began developing Rebel Bakehouse in 2018, with the goal of making the healthiest wraps available in the supermarket. To do this, we looked at alternative proteins during product development, which led us to cricket and hemp as protein sources. Both have amazing health benefits. Cricket flour, for example, has very high levels of protein, vitamins and nutrients, and when we met the team from Hemp Farm at the Auckland Food Show we discovered protein from hemp was around 50 per cent — in line with what we were hoping to do with cricket flour. Health-wise, hemp and crickets tick all the boxes and meet our goal of providing sustainable, healthy food.
One of your wrap varieties incorporates hemp. Why hemp and what are the benefits in the wrap?
Last year the government regulated hemp for use in food production, meaning hemp seeds are treated like any other edible seed — and [they’re] nutritious and safe to eat. Hemp has significant health benefits. It’s high in omega fatty acids, protein and fibre, and is also a complete plant protein, great for people eating plant-based diets. We believe it’s a crop of the future, particularly when you consider it’s estimated the world will need to feed 9.7 billion people by 2050.
Can you explain to us what the ‘scrunch test’ is and how your wraps are different from other wraps?
With our wraps, you can take them, scrunch them into a ball and it will bounce back without crumbling or breaking, meaning it’s entirely flexible. Basically doing what we believe a wrap should. How do we achieve this? At Rebel Bakehouse our team is full of bakers who use the best ingredients and best processes to make the best products for Kiwis.
You’ve got delicious recipes on how to use the wraps to their full potential your website. Who dreams these up?
All four of our wraps — hemp, cricket flour, spinach and purple corn — have individual flavours. We’ve been working with some amazing chefs, who have taken these unique flavours and created recipes that make the most of each. It’s a bit of a team effort and there have been some amazing creations, there’s something for everyone.
What are some interesting facts about your wraps that perhaps not many people would know?
All of our wraps carry a minimum 4-star health rating, and we are working towards achieving a 5-star rating on each. Our purple corn wrap is packed full of antioxidants and was the main crop of the Aztecs. This ancient grain comes all the way from the Andes. Our wraps are made in the Wairarapa. We are a family owned business that has been baking bread for more than 75 years.
