Episode 43: From Family Health Crisis to Whole Foods Shelves: The NUFS Story

Today on Gluten-Free Unwrapped, Jenny Finke interviews Kristine Tran, the co-founder of NUFS, a fast-growing seed-oil-free cracker brand found at Sprouts and Whole Foods.

While the crackers are amazing, what makes this brand truly special is the story behind it.

Kristine shares how her father’s health challenges, including a diabetes diagnosis, became the catalyst for creating a product she and her co-founder/sister, Jess, felt proud to feed their own family.

In this conversation, we talk about the early pivots that shaped NUFS, including their shift from superfood bites to crackers, the realities of building and scaling a food brand, and what it’s like to run a business with your sister.

We also dig into what it takes to stand out in a crowded CPG space, why certifications like gluten-free and kosher matter, and how they think about ingredient quality, pricing, and building trust with their customers.

And of course, we talk about the fun stuff too, including how Kristine came up with the Hot Honey flavor and what might be coming next.

In This Episode, We Cover:

• The personal story behind NUFS and how their father’s health inspired the brand
• Kristine’s background in finance and how it shaped a thoughtful, customer-first approach
• The evolution from superfood bites to crackers, and why they made the pivot
• What it’s really like building a business with your sibling
• How they developed a clean-label cracker that actually tastes good
• The story behind their Hot Honey flavor and what makes it so unique
• How they broke into major retailers like Sprouts and Whole Foods
• The realities of scaling a food business and growing quickly
• Why gluten-free and kosher certifications have been key to building trust
• Their perspective on pricing, ingredients, and educating consumers
• Food trends they’re watching and what’s next for NUFS

Discount
Use code LOVEME10 for a special discount at getnufs.com.

Listen to the full episode on Gluten Free Unwrapped wherever you get your podcasts.

About Kristine Tran and NUFS

• Visit getnufs.com
• Instagram: @getnufs
• Facebook: @NUFS
• LinkedIn: @Kristine Tran

About the Host

Jenny Finke is the host of Gluten Free Unwrapped. She’s a longtime blogger at Good For You Gluten Free and founder of the popular gluten-free subscription boxes, Love Me Gluten Free.

You can follow Jenny on Instagram at @goodforyouglutenfree or subscribe to her newsletter at welcome.goodforyouglutenfree.com.

You can snag a Love Me Gluten Free subscription box at lovemeglutenfree.com and follow on Instagram (@lovemeglutenfree) or Facebook (@lovemeglutenfreebox).