A Series of Profiles of Thought Leaders Changing the Business Landscape: Robert Smith, CEO, RiceBran Technologies
To understand what Robert Smith is up to at RiceBran Technologies, one must know a bit about rice bran. The world will produce about 480 million metric tons of rice in 2017. Much of this rice will be milled to remove the outer bran layers from the whole grain to produce white rice, which is how most of the world consumes rice. In all, some 40 million metric tons of bran is produced as a byproduct. Much of it is sold as a low value animal feed or discarded, despite the fact that rice bran is high in protein, healthy fats, dietary fiber and vitamins. RiceBran Technologies wants to change that.
“Today, less than one percent of the rice bran produced globally is marketed as a food ingredient. At RiceBran Technologies, we aim to increase that percentage significantly by marketing the nutritional, functional and health benefits of stabilized rice bran,” says RiceBran Technologies CEO Robert Smith.
“The outside layers of brown rice represent only about 10 percent by weight of a grain of brown rice but contain much of the nutritional value. However, because the bran turns rancid within hours of being milled, due to oil degrading enzymes that occur naturally in the grain, the bran is unpalatable and not suitable for manufacturing food products that require longer shelf-lives. Our Company uses its proprietary technology to stabilize the bran within minutes after it is milled. It’s then sold as a value-added, nutritious, clean-label ingredient for the food, companion pet and animal nutrition markets. This also benefits rice mills by providing additional outlets and premium value for their co-product.”
“RiceBran Technologies has opened up a large opportunity to transform a commodity co-product into a value added ingredient for food companies that are seeking to adopt novel ingredients to address consumer demands for minimally processed and “better-for-you” foods. Considered a clean-label ingredient—non-GMO and free of all major allergens — stabilized rice bran offers food companies a naturally abundant and wholesome ingredient that can help reduce highly processed or synthetic ingredients.”
Part of RiceBran Technologies’ challenge is not only solving that technological barrier, but also educating consumers and food companies about rice bran’s availability and nutritional benefits. That’s where Smith’s science background has proved valuable. He is a scientist by training with a Ph.D. in molecular genetics and cell biology. “I'm not your traditional CEO,” says Smith with a laugh. “And I certainly did not approach it from the business world. I came at it from science and from overseeing operations. I'm really more of an ag/biotech person, more academic in that sense than a business-track CEO.”
“I learned about the opportunities at RiceBran Technologies about five years ago and was intrigued that this milling co-product was under-appreciated. I came on board initially to provide technical support for Sales and Marketing and to oversee the development of new products. From there, I transitioned into operations. And then, just over a year ago, I was elevated to the CEO role,” says Smith.
“To be fully adopted, stabilized rice bran will require some level of explanation to consumers and food companies — its origin, its benefits and its application in various products. My science background helps me articulate how companies can leverage the value of this ingredient to grow their business while delivering better-for-you products to their customer base is exciting and worth pursuing.”
His path to the company leadership wasn’t typical. A Midwesterner by birth, he lived outside the U.S. until he came back for college. “My childhood was a little different. My father worked for International Harvester, selling tractors and trucks for farming and construction. I grew up mostly in Europe and in South and Central America, and was always interested in biology.”
He studied biology at the University of Chicago as an undergrad, then stayed on to get his Ph.D. in molecular genetics and cell biology. From there, he did a post-doc in plant molecular biology at the University of Missouri in Columbia, Missouri. He then went to Rutgers University as an assistant research professor working on plant biology.
There he was recruited to join DeKalb Genetics, a major seed company where he led several research and development projects in major crops. He then directed research and development programs at PhycoGen Inc. and Global Protein Products Inc. before joining Herbal Science Group, a leader in the development of evidence-based functional ingredients from botanicals, as head of Business Development.
“I was initially intrigued with the business potential of rice bran when I was overseeing a research project for NutraCea, which was the former name of RiceBran Technologies. Not only did I come to realize that rice bran was mostly unrecognized by food companies as a key nutritional ingredient but learned the overall benefits of this co-product in supporting healthy nutrition. There is an abundance of valuable nutrients in rice bran. In addition to stabilizing the bran, we employ a patented process that combines the use of enzymes and separation technologies to produce value-added ingredients that command significant premiums because of their evidence-based health functionalities,” says Smith.
Prior to Smith taking the CEO reins, the company had raised a lot of capital that funded a number of acquisitions and investments that, in retrospect, were not core to what the company is about today. “Going forward, we’re refocused on stabilizing rice bran and making value added premium ingredients from rice bran,” says Smith. “We are divesting non-core assets, consolidating core operations in rice-growing regions of the country, and cutting out significant costs in the process. And in doing so, we are repairing our balance sheet and positioning our company for growth by securing additional bran supplies on the west coast and in the mid-south.”
The RiceBran team is looking to expand their presence in premium equine feed and companion pet markets, as food ingredients for major CPG companies for cereals, pastas, snacks, baked goods, and meats, and in premium ingredients in several health and wellness markets.
“Looking forward, we’re focused on delivering on executing our business plan. Our goal is to become the leading provider of rice bran ingredients to the food and animal nutrition markets and to keep developing the future generation of rice bran ingredients that ultimately provide the nutritional and health benefits consumers are seeking. We’re optimistic about our growth potential over the coming two or three years — it’s really just a matter of everybody being on the same page and pulling together to execute the plan,” says Smith.
