Some entrepreneurs might say their startup began with a “light bulb moment.” But for Neal McTighe, it all began with tomato sauce splattered all over his apartment.

His interest in sauces spawns from his Italian ancestry, which he embraced in college after a life-changing year abroad in Italy. McTighe graduated with a B.S. in Italian and later earned master’s and doctorate degrees in the subject, in pursuit of a career of teaching and scholarship. But when the economy tanked in the late 2010s, he ended up in an academic publishing position at Duke University Press.

Outside of work, McTighe liked to experiment with different sauce recipes. After a year and a half of making mess after mess after mess, he stumbled on the right concoction. The recipe evolved into Nello’s Sauce when McTighe quit his job two years later, making a full-time commitment to building the company.

Today, Nello’s stands as a bootstrapped company with a healthy, locally produced sauce that’s available in over 700 stores throughout the United States. Three summer interns and a group of bloggers join McTighe in promoting the brand and extending its reach daily, while also strengthening a campaign to fight hunger.

And coming soon is expansion into larger chains of grocery stores, and new product lines meant to put more organic sauce offerings on grocery shelves.

The secret to Nello’s is some combination of vine-ripened tomatoes grown on American family farms, along with three unique flavors—marinara, lavender and hot and spicy. Available in 14 and 25-ounce jars, sauces are gluten and cholesterol free, vegan and non-GMO, with no artificial colors, flavors or preservatives. A new Tomato & Basil sauce will be released later this year.

Nello’s also has the first ever commercial biodynamic tomato sauce in the United States. Certified by the Demeter Association, the sauce comes from self-contained, self-sustaining farms.

There’s much more to tell. Read the full story at:

http://exitevent.com/article/now-on-700-store-shelves-nellos-sauce-clean-food-160621

Note: ExitEvent is a news partner of WRAL TechWire