William Wiggins is Nacho Average Chemist:

A trained chemist, William Wiggins has spent his career working on two tasks. First, making sure people don’t ingest toxic chemicals and second, preventing the corrosion of metals. While important work, during the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic William began to wonder if this is what he really wanted to do.

At the time, he was working for a company making base additives for hand sanitizer and started to think about food. After months of consideration, he began making salsa in Findlay Kitchen in April 2021.

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“Wiggins Family Foods thrives to serve you the best products. With locally grown and sourced ingredients from top contributors and our high-quality artisan salsa.” William hopes to scale and grow Wiggins Family Foods for the foreseeable future. Currently, he’s working to employ more professionals to help with the manufacturing process so he can better develop his marketing skills.

What makes William’s salsa special? How does it reduce food waste? “Beat-up tomatoes still make good salsa” William reflects. Initially, all his ingredients came from vendors at Findlay Market. “Vendors weren’t able to sell bruised, squished, or misshapen produce to the general public because it didn’t look beautiful on the shelf, but it all makes amazing, fresh salsa!” Another added benefit, “ugly produce” is often sold at a discounted rate.

“Farmers and grocers don't want to waste, and customers can be picky. If I’m processing and blending ingredients- appearance is much less of a factor. All the nutrients and all the energy used to grow those products are still there,” says William.

Looking to start your own business? William reminds us “Don't be afraid to step back and put yourself on the opposite side of the table. You can’t be afraid to step outside your comfort zone. Originally, I wanted to be in the kitchen making salsa, but to be efficient I had to go into sales. Now I’m perfecting those skills.”

If you’re looking to buy some of this locally sourced-salsa, you have a few great options. You can buy online at https://www.wffoods.store or visit Findlay Market. William has been perfecting his sales technique, working the table on Saturday & Sunday mornings.

Homemade Chicken Tacos with Wiggins Family Foods Salsa

Ingredients

• 6 corn or flour tortillas

• 1 jar Wiggins Family Foods salsa

• ½ cup cheddar cheese

• 2 chicken breasts

• 1 tsp desired seasoning

Oven Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 400*F

2. Place chicken on a flat on baking sheet, and season both sides with desired seasoning prior to cooking

3. Bake for 20 - 25 minutes, flip after 10-12 minutes

4. Remove from oven and cut into desired sizes

5. Top tortilla with chopped chicken, cheese, and Wiggins Family Foods salsa, and enjoy

Crockpot Directions:

1. Place chicken in the crockpot with ¾ cup of water and seasoning

2. Cook for the allotted time of 4 - 10 hours dependent on frozen or thawed chicken to start

3. Once the chicken is cooked shred in the crockpot

4. Add Wiggins Family Foods salsa and mix

5. Top tortilla with chicken and cheese, then enjoy