Founder Feature: Marc Brown of ONOIN

Founder Feature: Marc Brown of ONOIN

From The Startup CPG Podcast by Startup CPG

May 15, 2026 · 32 min · Season 4 · Episode 307

About this episode

Caitlin Bricker interviews Marc Brown, founder of ONOIN, discussing his innovative product and insights into the food industry.

In this episode of the Startup CPG Podcast, host Caitlin Bricker sits down with Marc Brown, founder of ONOIN — a line of shelf-stable, pre-chopped and flavored onions in 100% olive oil designed to save you time and tears in the kitchen. ONOIN comes in four flavors — original, garlic and herb, jalapeño lime, and ginger and lemongrass — and is designed to go on or in anything, from eggs to meatballs to savory oatmeal bowls. Marc is a food scientist with a master's degree from Drexel University and a seriously stacked background: R&D and industrialization at Danone, Head of R&D as employee #8 at Clio Snacks, and R&D and contract manufacturing work at Hain Celestial. He came to founding ONOIN with a rare 360-degree view of the food industry — from bench science to co-manufacturer negotiations to retailer conversations — and shares hard-won lessons throughout this conversation. Together, Caitlin and Marc dig into why chopped onions in a jar hadn't been done before (and why it should have been), the origin story of the ONOIN name (credit goes to his brother-in-law at a backyard grill), and what makes a co-manufacturer relationship truly work. Marc breaks down the three-part…

People in this episode

Host: Caitlin Bricker

Guest: Marc Brown

Topics covered

  • food industry
  • entrepreneurship
  • product development
  • co-manufacturing
  • pricing strategy
  • distribution

Keywords

  • ONOIN
  • chopped onions
  • food science
  • co-manufacturer
  • pricing transparency
  • retail partners
  • entrepreneur

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: ONOIN, Danone, Clio Snacks, Hain Celestial

Places: Drexel University

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